Tennessee suspect texted friend link to Islamic verse before attack

Hours before the Tennessee shooting that killed five U.S. servicemen, the suspected gunman texted his close friend a link to a long Islamic verse that included the line: "Whosoever shows enmity to a friend of Mine, then I have declared war against him." 

The friend, who requested anonymity, showed the text message to Reuters on July 18. He said he thought nothing of the message at the time, but now wonders if it was a hint at the July 16 attack in Chattanooga. 

The suspect, Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, a 24-year-old Kuwaiti-born naturalized U.S. citizen, was killed in a gunfight with police. The FBI is investigating the shooting as an act of terrorism, but said it was premature to speculate on the gunman's motive. 

The rampage has re-ignited concerns about the radicalization of young Muslim men. Abdulazeez's friends said he returned from a trip to Jordan in 2014 concerned about conflicts in the Middle East and the reluctance of the United States and other countries to intervene. 

After the trip, he purchased three assault rifles on an online marketplace and used them for target practice, the friends said. 

"He expressed that he was upset about (the Middle East). But I can't imagine it drove him to this," said the friend who received the text message. 

Authorities said Abdulazeez sprayed gunfire at a joint military recruiting center in a strip mall in Chattanooga, then drove to a Naval Reserve Center about 6 miles (10 km) away, where he killed four Marines before he himself was shot dead. 

Three other people were injured, including a U.S. Navy petty officer who died from his wounds on July 18. 

The Navy did not give the name of the sailor, but his step-grandmother identified him as Navy Petty...