Activist's case will test US anti-terrorism law

02/18/10: The Los Angeles Times reports that Ralph Fertig is the lead plaintiff in a Supreme Court case to be heard next week that will test whether speaking out on behalf of an oppressed foreign minority, represented by a group that's been deemed a terrorist organization by the US, can result in a long prison term. In 1996, Congress expanded the anti-terrorism law, imposing a prison term of up to 15 years for providing "training" or "expert advice or assistance" to a designated international terrorist group. The ban on supporting terrorists forbids sending not only money, weapons and fighters, but also charitable funds. Government lawyers say it even forbids filing a legal brief or writing an op-ed essay on behalf of a designated terrorist group.