As Congress Considers Aid Package for Jordan, Gold Star Families Urge Extraditions of Soldier Killer and Terrorist Bomber to U.S.

WASHINGTON, July 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The parents of three U.S. Army Special Forces members murdered at the King Faisal Air Base in Jordan in 2016 today urged Congress to call for the extraditions of the Jordanian soldier that killed their sons and a convicted Jordanian terrorist tied to a suicide bombing that killed 15 civilians, including two Americans, and wounded 130.

Ahlam Al-Tamimi ? the terrorist convicted in Israel after the 2001 bombing of a pizzeria in Jerusalem ? was released to Jordan in a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas in 2011. Prosecutors alleged Tamimi helped plan the bombing which killed a pregnant American woman and a 15-year-old American girl. Tamimi, who has been listed on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists List, has lived freely in Jordan since her release.

As Congress considers a new foreign aid package for Jordan, the parents of the U.S. Green Berets ambushed at the Jordanian air base during a training assignment said the government of King Abdullah should publicly apologize for the murders of their sons and explain why his country harbors a terrorist that killed Americans in the pizzeria bombing.

The families of U.S. Army Sergeant First Class Matthew Charles Lewellen, of Kirksville, Mo., Staff Sergeant Kevin Joseph McEnroe, of Tucson, Ariz., and Staff Sergeant James Francis Moriarty, of Houston, said Congress should withhold or reduce foreign aid to Jordan until the king addresses the killings.

According to the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. is Jordan's single largest provider of bilateral assistance, including $1.275 billion this year, plus other economic aid, foreign debt payments and U.S. Department of Defense support. According to the Congressional Research Service, Jordan has received a total of $22.09 billion in economic and military assistance, and is the third-largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid this year.

On June 29, the Lewellen, McEnroe and Moriarty families contacted 84 members of Congress that represent them or that serve on relevant Senate and House committees, and urged them to suspend foreign aid to Jordan and call for the extraditions.

Brian McEnroe, the father of Kevin McEnroe and a resident of Bradenton, Fla., said, "What we found after our sons were murdered in service to our nation was that Jordan will say and do anything to keep U.S. foreign aid flowing. On his next visit to Washington or before any more aid is transferred to Jordan, King Abdullah should answer to Congress for the murders of our sons and for the Americans and others killed in the pizzeria massacre. All of the families deserve justice."

After the Nov. 4, 2016 attack on the Green Berets, the families said, the government of Jordan initiated a deceptive strategy intended to deflect from the murderous military officer's instigation of the attack. After intense diplomatic pressure, the shooter, Ma'Arek Al-Tawayha, a first sergeant at the air force base checkpoint guard post, eventually was prosecuted, convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Cindy and Chuck Lewellen, the parents of Matt Lewellen and residents of Kirksville, Mo., said, "We learned at the trial of our son's murderer that his mother claimed the Government of Jordan gave him a promotion and a medal after the attack on our son. We also learned that the terrorist in the pizzeria massacre apparently is living as some sort of media celebrity in Jordan. Before King Abdullah gets another dollar of U.S. foreign aid, he should explain why he is harboring a terrorist that killed Americans and why he refuses to apologize for the murder of our son."

James R. Moriarty, the father of James Francis Moriarty and a resident of Houston, said, "We understand from the recent statements of the U.S. nominee for ambassador to Jordan, Henry Wooster, that the Trump Administration is considering options to force the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to extradite the terrorist Tamimi. We support that extradition, along with a U.S. prosecution of the murderer of our sons. We also hope all of the families of Americans killed by Jordanians finally get some measure of justice. King Abdullah should remember this: We will not stop until we do."

Powers MediaWorks LLC and Astra Communications represent the Lewellen, McEnroe, and Moriarty families.

Media Contacts: Erin Powers, Powers MediaWorks LLC, [email protected], 281.703.6000; and Lynn Hinkle Roberts, Astra Communications, [email protected], 816.616.4236.

SOURCE Powers MediaWorks LLC and Astra Communications