Amina Ali and Hawo Hassan arrested in MN for al Shabaab link [VIDEO]

Photo: banspy

Amina Ali and Hawo Hassan were taken into custody this afternoon.

Two naturalized American citizens living in Rochester, both originally from Somalia, have been arrested on charges that they conspired to provide material support to the Somali terrorist group al Shabaab. The FBI took Amina Farah Ali, 33, and Hawo Mohamed Hassan, 63, into custody this afternoon.

They among a group of 14 Somali-Americans targeted in a string of arrests today related to the disappearance of Somali men in Minnesota and elsewhere who are suspected of traveling back to Somalia to fight with al Shabaab.

"These indictments and arrests in Minnesota, Alabama, and California shed further light on a deadly pipeline that has routed funding and fighters to al-Shabab from cities across the United States," U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in announcing the arrests.

Ali is also charged in the with 12 counts of providing material support to al Shabaab. Hassan is also charged with three counts of making false statements.

The indictment alleges that, as part of the conspiracy, Ali communicated by telephone with people in Somalia who requested financial assistance for al Shabaab.

Ali, Hassan, and others allegedly raised the money by soliciting funds door-to-door in Somali communities in Minneapolis, Rochester, and other locations in the United States and Canada; and by direct appeal to during teleconferences that featured speakers who encouraged donations to support al Shabaab. Ali also allegedly raised funds under the false pretense that such funds were for the poor and needy.

The indictment alleges that Ali and others transferred funds to al Shabaab through the hawala money remittance system. Ali and others allegedly used false names to identify the recipients of the funds to conceal that the funds were being provided to al Shabaab.

Here's some video of U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announcing the arrests: