“This fits a pattern of Americans who joined Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs), which is illegal pursuant to US law.” Over the last decades, numerous Americans have joined terrorist groups and some have been killed in fighting abroad. Most infamous is Adam Gadahn, killed in a US drone strike while working with Al Qaeda.Truzman is a long-time expert on militant and terrorist groups, specifically covering Gaza. He notes that “Osama al-Zebda appears to have been the target of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military campaign against leaders and commanders of militant factions in Gaza. Multiple commanders and mid-level Hamas militants were reportedly killed during the 10-day operation.”The FDD article by Truzman notes that it is unclear if Osama was born in the US or was a naturalized citizen. Jamal al-Zebda, the man’s father, was also killed in the May 12 airstrike. Nasser Atta, a journalist and expert notes that “professor Jamal Al Zebda, 64 years old, was the head of the Rockets development department within Hamas… he graduated from US universities and his eldest son Osama, 33 years old, is a US citizen who was an engineer at the rockets department; both were killed by an Israeli airstrike in Gaza 10 days ago.”Truzman notes that Jamal was described by the IDF’s Hebrew-language site as a “senior member of Hamas’s research and development division.” Al-Monitor also noted his name on May 13 as one of the “commanders, who had made up the core of Hamas’s military project, including brigade commander for Gaza City Bassem Issa, Jomaa Tahla, Jamal al-Zebda, Kazem al-Khatib, Walid Shmali and Sami Radwan.”He had a PhD in mechanical engineering, specializing in aerodynamics. This would be a key to his work in rocketry.“A paper written by Jamal al-Zebda on aerodynamics at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 1989 appears on the Aerospace Research Center’s website, suggesting Osama’s father was possibly in the United States either studying or working there. However, FDD’s Long War Journal could not independently verify if it was written by the same person,” the FDD report notes. Truzman’s report asserts that social media circulated images of Osama al-Zebda and his father and called them martyrs.“A social media post from May 19, posted by someone claiming to be the wife of Osama, claimed he was an American.” Furthermore, “in an interview on a Palestinian media network, family members described Osama as a ‘military man outside the house,’ and that both father and son were engineers.”On Monday, images circulated on Palestinian social media showed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar holding the son of Osama al-Zebda. The young boy’s image has now been circulated widely. The wife of Osama also spoke to Palestinian media. She was quoted as saying that “I tell the occupation to keep the names of my children well, and I will not allow them to be less than their grandfather and their father… Their father is one of the engineers of the al-Qassam Brigades and their grandfather, the world-famous martyr, Jamal al-Zebda, is one of the most important leaders and engineers in the battalions.”Proffosser [sic] Jamal Al Zebda, 64 YO was the head of the Rockets development dep. within Hamas he graduated from US universities & his eldest son Osama, 33 YO, is a US citizen who was an engineer at the rockets department both were killed by an #Israeli airstrike in #Gaza 10 days ago pic.twitter.com/agQtwoob4T
— Nasser Atta (@nasseratta5) May 24, 2021
תמיד הנישוקים המוגזמים האלה pic.twitter.com/HFf5mu3ZYQ
— Shimrit Meir שמרית מאיר (@shimritmeir) May 25, 2021