Jason Trahan of the Dallas Morning News has written an interesting story about two women — Kimberly "Asma" Al-Homsi (42) and Aisha Abdul-Rahman Hamad (50) — conducting what appears to be surveillance of airplanes and the layout of an airport in Dallas: 

Dallas police and federal terrorism officials are investigating two women, both dressed in camouflage pants under their traditional Muslim robes and scarves, who were seen conducting what appeared to be surveillance and acting suspiciously at Dallas Love Field.

Love field is Dallas' secondary airport and is serviced by American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Southwest Airlines. It has three runways.  

On the afternoon of Feb. 25, Ms. Al-Homsi and a friend who could not be reached for comment, Aisha Abdul-Rahman Hamad, 50, of Irving, were spotted at Love Field wearing Muslim robes and camouflage pants and "acting suspiciously," the bulletin states. The surveillance video shows one of the women walking back and forth, apparently pacing off distances.

When confronted, the women told officials they were looking for the Frontiers of Flight museum. They left in a red Honda. Descriptions of the incident and the car were circulated at the airport.

Two days later, the museum executive director was leaving for the evening when he noticed the Honda parked facing the runway. A woman, later identified as Ms. Al-Homsi, was sitting on the hood, looking through binoculars at the airplanes. He told the women the museum was closing, and they left.

Dallas officers stopped the car nearby, but the women refused to let police search their car, according to a police report. The women had digital camera memory cards, binoculars, a flashlight and several lighters on them.Police issued one of them a citation for having no front license plate and failing to change her address on a driver's license. They were released."We were watching the airplanes," Ms. Al-Homsi said. "That's not a crime, unless you're Muslim."

Indeed, it is not a crime to watch airplanes through binoculars or mark off distances in an airport. But if you are on the no-fly list, as Al-Homsi reportedly is, further questioning is what you are going to get. Also important to the story is the fact that Al-Homsi is on probation for making threats with a grenade. 

On Dec. 20, 2005, Ms. Al-Homsi was arrested after a report that she waved a grenade at a motorist on Central Expressway near LBJ Freeway. Richardson police stopped her car and arrested her. The Garland bomb squad determined the grenade was a fake. She was released the next day, after officials charged her with making a bomb hoax. She was placed on probation.

Ms. Al-Homsi is no stranger to controversy, or of drawing attention to herself. "I'm a trained sniper and proud of it," she told the Dallas Morning News. She keeps her shooting skills sharp at the Alpine Shooting range in Forth Worth where employee Dave Rodgers had this to say about Ms. Al-Hosmi: 

"In all the Muslim garb, shooting an assault weapon, it seemed at first like she was trying to draw attention," said Dave Rodgers. "But then she came out so much, it became normal."

He said federal agents have talked to range employees about Ms. Al-Homsi, which is not uncommon of their clientele. He recalls seeing the fake grenade hanging from Ms. Al-Homsi's rearview mirror before she was arrested.

Ms. Al-Homsi says she is "not a dangerous individual." Al-Homsi also says that she has dual Syrian-US citizenship, which is highly unlikely. The US government lists Syria as a state sponsor of terror.  

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