TRENTON - In the shade of Mill Hill within eyeshot of the George Washington Statue, Dr. Adam Hamawy - U.S. Army veteran - addressed his past association with the Blind Sheikh, and his views on Israel and war.

InsiderNJ asked Dr. Hamawy if he condemns the Blind Sheikh, convicted for seditious conspiracy, and if he condemns Jihad and religious extremism.

"Obviously, any extremism of any kind is bad," Hamawy told InsiderNJ. "I have spent my life saving lives rather than taking them, so clearly I've shown I've served this country in uniform, I've taken care of hundreds of troops and soldiers. I've served this community. I was a responder on 9/11. So, clearly my actions speak for themselves, and I'm against all war and all violence. That's really what I've been saying since day one. Healthcare not bombs. I've seen the horrors of war and so, yes, I condemn all extremism and all violence of any kind."

The Blind Sheikh?

"Thirty years ago, he was a well-known person in the community. He spoke all over New Jersey ...As a Muslim, they're always going to find something to attack.

"I'm used to it," he added.

Some context, via Matt Friedman's Politico earlier this week:

You probably remember “The Blind Sheikh” Omar Abdel-Rahman, who went to federal prison for life after being convicted of terrorism and seditious conspiracy. It was a huge story in the aftermath of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, which was carried out by the then-New Jersey resident’s followers.

During Abdel-Rahman’s trial, the defense called then-medical student Hamawy as a witness to contradict a federal informant’s claim that Abdel-Rahman encouraged the informant to kill then-Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak. 

And today, from Trenton: