6. (C) The Ambassador raised the concurrent visit to Egypt of Ambassador David Gross, U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy, noting that he was in Egypt to discuss not only technical issues related to information technology, but also freedom of expression vis-a-vis the internet, and how the U.S. is striking a balance between freedom of expression and the protection of citizens from terrorists and criminals (see ref B for further details on Ambassador Gross' visit). Abdul Rahman welcomed the Ambassador's offer to provide an Arabic-language version of Gross's public statements while in Egypt. He noted that "the internet is a very dangerous apparatus, and we need to understand how to address it in an effective way." Commenting that "many of the members of the two extremist cells we arrested recently were mainly dealing with each other on the internet," Abdul Rahman said, "we are concerned by extremist websites, but we would never infringe on freedom of expression." Referencing the challenges posed by the internet, he said, "a young Egyptian can become radicalized without even leaving his home - he just surfs various jihadi websites." He therefore engages in no actual activities in the proverbial street until he actually undertakes a terrorist operation, and "this makes it very difficult for any security agency to monitor." Pistole agreed that the phenomenon of "virtual radicalization" is challenging, and noted that in the U.S., the FBI prefers to monitor the continuing online conversations of extremists, so that the full scope of their activities can be uncovered, rather than disrupting the communications immediately. RICCIARDONE