Mr. Obama argued that killing Mr. Awlaki was the equivalent of a justified police shooting of a gunman who was threatening civilians. In 2005, he discovered the recorded lectures of Mr. Awlaki — who had not yet fully embraced violence — on sale in an Islamic bookstore in London. His sober devotion to the jihadist cause, however, persuaded Mr. Awlaki that he could be trusted with a suicide attack. When a friend from Nigeria called to urge Mr. Abdulmutallab to come home, he realized his parents were behind the call. If not, then Mr. Awlaki “could repent for those sins and his commitment to jihad would outweigh such transgressions,” Mr. Abdulmutallab said.

Source: New York Times February 23, 2017 01:52 UTC