A man charged with being an al Qaeda terrorist failed to appear at a court hearing today after questions arose about his mental health because of his allegedly aggressive behavior.
Ibrahim Suleiman Adnan Adam Harun, 43, is charged with attacking US forces in Afghanistan and plotting bomb strikes against American diplomatic facilities in Nigeria, in a case unveiled publicly earlier this week.
Although he provided information to US investigators after his arrest in Italy in 2011, Harun has become combative and angry — and at times has spit at officials while being locked up in federal detention facilities, sources told The Post.
Harun’s alleged outbursts have raised questions about whether he may be experiencing psychiatric problems, the sources said.
At a court hearing today, Susan Kellman — one of Harun’s defense attorneys — told a Brooklyn federal judge that her client would not appear because he was “not feeling well.”
She then asked the judge to allow a private sidebar discussion because the issue involved personal details about Harun that should remain private.
After a muted five-minute conversation at the bench between defense attorneys and federal prosecutors, Brooklyn federal Judge Brian Cogan said he was ordering the transcript sealed and ruled that experts need to assess Harun’s condition.
“The defendant has substantial medical issues, and his ability to knowingly and intelligently participate in this proceedings” requires professional intervention, Cogan said.
“Obviously there needs to be an evaluation of the defendant’s ability to participate in these proceedings,” the judge said, without providing additional details.
Harun, who adopted the nom de guerre “Spin Ghul” – which means “White Rose” – is being held at the federal Metropolitan Correctional Center in lower Manhattan, where a number of other high-profile defendants accused of terrorism have been housed.
Prosecutors say that Harun is a citizen of Niger who joined al Qaeda just weeks before 9-11 and later in 2002 to 2003 attacked US military personnel in Afghanistan.
After receiving additional training in Pakistan, Harun traveled to West Africa and conspired to use explosive devices to attack US consular and diplomatic facilities, the feds say, with potential targets located in the capital, Abuja, or in Lagos, the nation’s largest city.
In 2005, Harun was trying to make his way to Europe when he was arrested in Libya at a time when Moammar Khadafy still presided over an authoritarian regime.
What became of Harun during the murky four years he was in Libyan custody is unclear, but he was released in June 2011 in the final weeks of a civil war as Khadafy’s regime crumbled.
Harun then boarded a vessel carrying refugees that was bound for Italy, officials said, and while on board allegedly announced his affiliation with al Qaeda and then assaulted a crew member — prompting Italian authorities to arrest him.
US officials interviewed him over three days in Sept. 2011 in the presence of an Italian judge, and Harun provided information about terrorism, court documents show.
A Brooklyn federal grand jury handed down a sealed indictment on Feb. 21, 2012 charging Harun with a spectrum of terror-related offenses, including conspiracy to murder US nationals, conspiring to bomb US government facilities, providing material support to al Qaeda, and illegally using firearms and explosives.
After an extradition request by Brooklyn federal prosecutors, last July an Italian appeals court in Naples ruled that Harun could be released to face trial in New York City.
FBI agents assigned to the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force took custody of Harun in Italy on Oct. 4, and later on the same day he was arraigned in a secret sealed proceeding before a judge in Brooklyn federal court.
The arrest was made public earlier this week, but officials have declined to explain the timing.
mmaddux@nypost.com