The next day I was blindfolded, ear plugged then ear muffed. I was shackled: hands chained to my waist and ankles shackled as well. For about a 24 hour flight I could not hear, see or touch anything…

Daniel Joseph Maldonado, an American convert, was arrested by the Kenyan military in January 2007 and handed over the US authorities. In April he pleaded guilty to a charge of receiving training from a foreign terrorist organization and was sentenced to ten years imprisonment in June. In this exclusive first-hand account from his cell in Houston’s Federal Detention Centre he describes to al-Istiqamah.com the circumstances around his migration to Somalia, the tragic death of his wife Umm Musa and his subsequent arrest in Kenya and imprisonment there and in the US.

Click here to see a scanned page of the original letter

In the name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Please and Blessings be Upon Muhammad. Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmahtullahi wa Barakatuhu.

Migration with Umm Musa (May Allah accept her):

Once my wife (may Allah accept her) and I found out that an Islamic State was established in Somalia, especially after the taking of Mogadishu, we decided to go and make Hijra (migration) from Egypt. Immediately we made plans and tried to sell everything in our apartment. After being offered about $7,000–$8000, Umm Musa (May Allah accept her) made such a beautiful statement. She said, “You know that everything (in the apartment) is worth more than that Daniel…But what Allah offers me is better!” So she gave away everything in the apartment to someone to distribute to the poor in a small village. If that wasn’t enough, we had about $2,800 cash after we had gotten tickets etc. She decided to give $2,000 to a close friend in deep debt, so as to reap as many blessings as possible for the trip ahead.

None of the above do I attribute to myself and Allah is a Witness over what I say. With only $800 we left for Somalia…Did that stop her? No, she still gave to those in need! To this day, I don’t even know half of the good she did. Such was her custom to keep it hidden.

Something worth mentioning, we ended up staying in the airport [at Dubai] for three days, waiting for a flight. What did Umm Musa say about going out in Dubai? She said, “I lived with poor people in Egypt; I am going to live with the poor in Somalia. Dubai will be a fitnah (trial)” Thus we slept in the airport. I can still see her (thinking back) nodding off while nursing the baby under her abaya (coat-like burqah) in secrecy.

She became extremely devout; everything about her changed for the better. Her faith was stronger than I have ever seen! She became so pious, and put all her trust in Allah to the point I felt I was no longer even on the same level as her…Not even close!

 

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