Update on Abdulazeez Uncles Being Held in Jordan

AMMAN, Jordan. (AP) – A Jordanian official says the uncle of the man who killed five U.S. servicemen in Tennessee last week is under investigation in custody in Jordan.

The official said Wednesday authorities are "trying to get as much information as possible" from Asaad Ibrahim Asaad Haj Ali, the maternal uncle of the attacker, Muhammed Youssef Abdulazeez.

Abdulazeez spent time at his uncle’s home in Jordan last year. Haj Ali’s detention was first reported Tuesday. He was arrested Friday, a day after the shooting attacks.

The official says Haj Ali is "being investigated regarding his relative and the period he (the relative) stayed in Jordan."

He says the investigation is being conducted in close coordination with U.S. counterparts. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – A maternal uncle who hosted the Chattanooga shooter in Jordan for a few months last year is a businessman with no links to any militant groups, his attorney says.

Abed al-Kader Ahmad al-Khateeb is the lawyer for the uncle, Asaad Ibrahim Asaad Haj Ali.

Al-Khateeb told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Haj Ali has been detained since the day after his nephew Mohamad Youssef Abdulazeez attacked two military sites in Chattanooga, Tennessee, killing four Marines and a sailor. The attacks took place Thursday. The attorney says Haj Ali has not been charged with any crimes.

Al-Khateeb says Abdulazeez stayed with the uncle in Jordan, but only to help him with his small cellphone business. Al-Khateeb says neither Abdulazeez nor his uncle was religious or belonged to any sort of political organization.