WASHINGTON — US officials said Wednesday that an Israeli woman living in Wisconsin coached potential Islamic State attackers on how to cook up ricin and kept a library of books on making bombs, poisons and suicide vests.
The Justice Department charged Waheba Issa Dais with attempting to provide material support to Islamic State after arresting the 45 year old divorcee in Cudahy, Wisconsin on Wednesday.
She was said to be the first person in six months to be arrested on charges of supporting a violent jihadist group.
Dais, a legal US resident since 1992, used a number of social media accounts, including accounts hijacked from others, to promote the Islamic State group and facilitate recruitment, according to an indictment.
She maintained “a virtual library of instructions on how to make bombs, biological weapons, poisons and suicide vests” to assist Islamic State supporters in plotting attacks.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Edition
by email and never miss our top stories
By signing up, you agree to the
terms
She encouraged one person, apparently a law enforcement informant, on how to make the poison ricin and “suggested the individual introduce the ricin to a government post of water reservoirs,” it said.
She also allegedly suggested targets for bomb attacks including street festivals and other summer celebrations.
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
