Soueid's attorney, federal public defender Michael Nachmanoff, said the sentence was a fair one. The 18-month term was much shorter than the six-year term sought by the government. The defense had argued for a one-year sentence. Soueid was also given credit for the nine months he has already served since his arrest.

"Mr. Soueid was motivated by a fear of Islamic extremism, and that is a real threat" as various groups battle for control in what is increasingly viewed as a civil war against Assad's secular regime. "This is a guy who believed, and still believes, that having Islamic extremists taking over is bad for Syria and bad for the U.S."

In court papers arguing for a lighter sentence, Nachmanoff wrote: "Like many other Americans, he has hoped that political uprisings in Libya, Egypt, and elsewhere would lead to stable democracies.