NEW YORK — A Denver native convicted of helping the Taliban has testified at a terrorism trial that he tried to create a militant jihad training camp in Oregon but that he no longer supports terrorist causes.
James Ujaama, a Muslim convert who was born in Denver and raised in Seattle, told a jury in federal court in Manhattan on Wednesday that he envisioned the camp in 1999 as a military-style training ground for Muslims who would fight in Afghanistan.
Ujaama was called by prosecutors as a witness in the trial of Oussama Kassir. Kassir is accused of helping al-Qaeda by trying to set up a weapons-training post in Bly, Ore.
Ujaama testified he was foolish to have supported terrorists. He has pleaded guilty to terrorism charges and seeks leniency from a potential 30-year sentence.
