Word: abouhalima
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Luckily for him, by that time Abouhalima had moved in with Egyptian friends who lived in an apartment building in Munich. Across the hall resided a 34- year-old German named Renate Soika, a nurse with a history of alcoholism and emotional problems. As far as Abouhalima was concerned, it was a perfect match. The wedding took place at city hall in December, enabling him to remain in Germany...
Soika was happy to help Abouhalima stay in Munich. In return, she got a provider who was tall, courteous and confident. It wasn't love exactly, but Mahmud's traditional values appealed to Soika. He prayed five times a day and avoided alcohol. He brought her flowers on her birthday. And he insisted that she quit her job and devote her time to cooking and caring for the home. "He was always polite and friendly," recalls Soika. "He was never violent, never aggressive...
Eager to finish his education in order to become a teacher, Abouhalima took night classes in German and soon spoke the language fluently. He also worked at menial jobs, first as a dishwasher, then behind the meat counter of a grocery store. A former co-worker remembers Abouhalima as a quiet, hardworking man who was constantly tired, but never tardy...
...Abouhalima's social life revolved around the Egyptian immigrant community in Munich, especially the orthodox Muslims he met while praying in makeshift mosques. He invited several Muslim friends who needed housing to live temporarily with him and his wife. Abouhalima conducted many smoky gatherings in their home, where groups of Egyptians would sit and discuss politics in Arabic, which Soika did not understand. Soika says she was left with the impression that Mahmud worked in some kind of "underground," but she couldn't put her finger on it. "He never said anything about it directly," she says. "But I could...
...Abouhalima never hid his opinions. He condemned the governments of Sadat and later Mubarak, along with their supporters like the U.S. Abouhalima had little regard for Germans, complaining that they drank too much, had cold personalities and spent money too lavishly. Despite his bitterness toward Egypt, he longed for his homeland and spoke about it often. He read Arabic newspapers, and since his parents did not own a telephone, he made it a point to call one of his uncles in Egypt every Sunday...