São Paulo

Mohamed Ahmed Elsayed Ahmed Ibrahim, a 42-year-old Egyptian living in Brazil, was named on the FBI (US Federal Police) wanted list, for his alleged links to the Al Qaeda terrorist network.

Following the release of Ibrahim's name in the news on the 12th, he and his wife Hajar, 25, changed their daily routine.

Mohamed Ahmed Elsayed Ahmed Ibrahim - Arquivo pessoal

In addition to leaving the house where they lived, Ibrahim started taking sleeping pills and having health problems: the constant vomiting, according to the couple, made him lose 17 kg in three weeks. He weighed 84 kg and now is 67 kg.

"I remember the exact moment his face appeared in the National Journal," says Hajar. "I looked at the TV and saw the FBI coat of arms, the report saying he's armed and dangerous. I felt floating."

From then on, their cell phones stopped ringing. Well-known friends asked their friends if they would be rewarded if they gave the FBI their address, Hajar says.

The next day, Ibrahim contacted the Federal Police and arranged to testify two days later. He had been with PF on the 12th, shortly before the FBI list was released, to file an appeal against his denied request for refugee status in Brazil.

On the 19th, the Egyptian was heard by the FBI at the Federal Prosecutor's Office. After that, his name was removed from the wanted list as he was not at large. The American investigation continues and is confidential.

There has also been a confidential investigation in the Brazilian PF since the beginning of the year. According to a source linked to the case, this investigation was opened at the request of the FBI and has so far proved inconclusive.

The US police suspect Ibrahim of assisting in the planning of attacks against the United States and of providing material support to al Qaeda. The wanted list did not explain which attacks the Egyptian would have participated in.

Translated by Kiratiana Freelon

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