Well, they appended an update to the article, where Sen. Reyes clarifies that he does know what's going on. He is "acutely aware of Al Qaeda's desire to harm Americans." He sounds so much more smart and knowledgeable when he uses words like "acutely".
In the
original article in Congressional Quarterly, it's clear that he not only has trouble distinguishing Shia from Sunni (which might be excusable for the average American), but also that he has no idea what Hezbollah is.
Also, it seems that Trent Lott hit the nail on the head:
“Why do they kill people of other religions because of religion?”