Top 10 American jihadis: Where does Jihad Jane rank on the list?

LaRose is one of few American women ever charged with terror violations. Lynne Stewart was convicted of helping imprisoned blind Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman communicate with his followers, and Pakistani scientist Aafia Siddiqui was found guilty of shooting at US personnel in Afghanistan, according to the Associated Press.

Who's in and who's out

Our top 10 list is somewhat subjective. To keep it short, a number of notable US-born terrorists were not included, including Abu Yahya Mujahdeen Al-Adam, a Pennsylvania native who became an Al Qaeda operative and reportedly "close friend" of Osama bin Laden. Pakistani media have reported that he was arrested this past weekend in Karachi.

Our list also leaves out the 2007 plot of six New Jersey men charged with conspiring to attack Fort Dix; the 2009 Synagogue terror plot of four men arrested for plotting to blow up Jewish centers in the Bronx; and the Lackawana plot of six Yemeni-Americans arrested in September 2002 on allegations of giving material support to Al Qaeda.

Mr. Emerson, who heads The Investigative Project on Terrorism in Washington, D.C., says the fundamentalist Islamic community is quick to pounce on young and impressionable foreign converts.

"I was amazed at the way the global jihad village converged very quickly after [LaRose] offered to carry out jihad,” he says. “It was pretty eye-opening to see how quickly she was able to insert herself into a jihad plot."

"The question is whether there is a growth of radicalism within the American Muslim community, or whether in fact it’s always been there and it’s now being exploited by virtue of technology."

IN PICTURES: Top 10 American jihadis

Who would you include – or leave off – this list?

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