GI faces death penalty over al Qaeda spy charge

An American soldier faces the death penalty for trying to pass military secrets to al Qaeda terrorists.

Ryan Anderson, a part-time GI, had converted to Islam. He is accused of offering classified information that would help destroy tanks and kill American troops.

The 26-year-old army specialist was caught in an FBI sting operation after going into internet chatrooms to contact al Qaeda cells using the undercover name "Gunfighter." He is said to have offered drawings pinpointing the weak points of US army tanks.

Anderson was charged with four counts of passing information to the enemy.

The charges are said to be the most serious against a US serviceman since the end of the Cold War and could carry the death penalty under the military Code Of Justice.