Lindsey Graham: Kill US al-Qaida Operative Gadahn

South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has called for the killing, without hesitation or due process, of California-born al-Qaida operative Adam Gadahn.

"The use of lethal force against American-citizen al-Qaida leader Adam Gadahn is appropriate and should be utilized without hesitation," Graham wrote Monday on his Twitter feed @grahamblog, adding:




 
Then in a quick series of tweets, the senator elaborated:

"Even though Adam Gadahn is an American citizen, he should BE subject to being killed or captured by our military and intelligence forces," and "Adam Gadahn is an American citizen who has aligned himself with al-Qaida. He should be considered an enemy combatant, not a common criminal."

The Obama administration has reportedly made the case to order the killing of Americans if they are believed to be "senior operational leaders" of al-Qaida or an "associated force" – even if there's no intelligence indicating they're engaged in an active plot to attack the United States.

Graham's twitter posts came a day after SITE, a Washington-based monitoring group, reported Gadahn recently appealed to wealthy Muslims to offer bounties to kill ambassadors in the region.

"These prizes have a great effect in instilling fear in the hearts of our cowardly enemies," Gadahn said in the 39-minute video posted on websites used by Islamist militants.

The Yemen-based branch of al-Qaida last year offered 106 ounces of gold for the killing of the U.S. ambassador in Sana'a — or $23,350 for an American soldier in the Arab state.

Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans were killed in Benghazi, Libya, in September 2012, when Islamist gunmen attacked the consulate.

The FBI lists Gadahn, a spokesman for al-Qaida, among its "Most Wanted" terrorists — and is sought for treason and is worth $1 million to the person who aids in his capture, according to the National Journal.

Gadahn has called for attacks on U.S. diplomats before: In August 2007, he said al-Qaida would target diplomats and embassies in retaliation for U.S.-led military action in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Reuters contributed to this report.