INFLUENCE

Chattanooga Shooter Listened to Awlaki

Cleric who inspired Ft. Hood terrorist.

Chattanooga shooter Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez had downloaded recorded sermons by radical cleric and former Al Qaeda recruiter Anwar al-Awlaki, according to law enforcement officials. Abdulazeez also reportedly owned CDs featuring al-Awlaki’s sermons. Al-Awlaki is also believed to have influenced other U.S. domestic terrorists, including Ft. Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan and "Underwear Bomber" Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. Authorities are also investigating whether Abdulazeez’s uncle in Jordan, who is believed to be “radical” according to authorities, influenced the 24-year-old when he visited in 2014. Authorities detained the uncle on Tuesday, they said.