Afghan Citizen Pleads Guilty to Planning Terror Attack on US Election Day

By Naveen Athrappully

An Afghan national pleaded guilty at a federal court in Oklahoma City to two offenses related to terrorism for plotting an attack in the United States on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a June 13 statement.

Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, 27, has been charged with conspiring and attempting to provide material support and resources to the ISIS terrorist group. The second charge is for receiving, attempting to receive, and conspiring to receive firearms and ammunition to further terrorism.

Tawhedi admitted that between June 2024 and October 2024, he conspired with at least one other person to buy two AK-47 rifles, 500 rounds of ammunition, and 10 magazines to conduct a “mass-casualty attack” on or around Nov. 5, 2024, on behalf of ISIS, the DOJ said.

He and a co-conspirator were arrested on Oct. 7 after buying firearms and ammunition from an undercover FBI agent. The co-conspirator has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, facing a prison term of 15 years.

Tawhedi faced a maximum of 15 years on the firearms charge and a 20-year prison term for the material support charge.

Tawhedi and the co-conspirator will be “permanently removed from the United States and barred from reentry” after they’re released, said the DOJ.

FBI Director Kash Patel said, “The defendant admits he planned and obtained firearms to carry out a violent terror attack on Election Day in 2024, a plot that was detected and disrupted through the good work of the FBI and our partners.”

“Let this serve as notice to anyone who tries to conduct attacks in our homeland for ISIS or any other terror group: we will find you and you’ll face American justice.”

The Epoch Times reached out to Tawhedi’s attorney for comment and did not receive a response by publication time.

Federal authorities have arrested multiple individuals in recent weeks on charges of supporting terrorist activities.

On June 4, the DOJ announced the arrest of a man from Washington state over allegations that he provided material support to the person who bombed a fertility clinic in Palm Springs last month.

The arrested individual is alleged to have shipped and paid for “significant quantities of ammonium nitrate” to the bomber.

Earlier on June 3, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency said it arrested a 39-year-old Tajikistan-born Russian national, alleged to be a current or former member of the Al-Qaeda terrorist group.

US Terror Threat

In October, the Department of Homeland Security published its 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment, indicating that the threat of domestic and foreign terrorism in the United States “remains high,” according to an Oct. 2 statement from the agency.

“The threat will continue to be characterized primarily by lone offenders or small cells motivated to violence by a combination of racial, religious, gender, or anti-government grievances; conspiracy theories; and personalized factors,” the report said.

DHS raised concerns about the likelihood of violence motivated by global events such as the Israel–Hamas conflict.

Media outlets linked to foreign terrorist organizations “promote violent rhetoric intended to inspire U.S. persons to mobilize to violence, while foreign terrorists continue engaging online supporters to solicit funds; create and share media; and encourage followers to attack the Homeland, U.S. interests, and what they perceive as the West,” it said.

The Trump administration has taken steps to counter terror threats facing the country. Earlier this month, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation restricting the entry of foreign nationals into America, the White House said in a June 4 fact sheet.

The proclamation fully restricts the entry of individuals from 12 nations identified as posing “a very high risk” to the United States: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

Partial restrictions have been imposed on individuals from seven countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

“The restrictions and limitations imposed by the Proclamation are necessary to garner cooperation from foreign governments, enforce our immigration laws, and advance other important foreign policy, national security, and counterterrorism objectives,” the White House said.