New Delhi: A Pakistani national residing in Canada has pleaded guilty to attempting to carry out an Islamic State-inspired terrorist attack at a prominent Jewish center in Brooklyn, New York, according to US federal authorities.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, alias Shahzeb Jadoon, faces a maximum sentence of life in prison when he is due to be sentenced in August, a US Department of Justice statement said Wednesday.
“Khan planned a mass shooting at a Jewish center in New York City, timed to coincide with the anniversary of the 7 October Hamas attacks, with the explicit goal of killing as many Jews as possible. Khan declared that New York City was the ‘perfect’ venue for his attack because of its large Jewish population and boasted that his plot could be the largest attack on US soil since 9/11,” it added.
According to prosecutors, 21 year old Khan began expressing support for the ISIS online in late 2023, distributing propaganda videos and literature, and communicating with individuals about planning terrorist attacks in the United States. He later directed his efforts toward New York City, identifying a Jewish religious center in Brooklyn as his target.
Federal authorities said he planned the attack to coincide with the one-year anniversary of Hamas’ attacks in Israel on 7 October, 2023.
Prosecutors said he told undercover officers assisting in the investigation that the attack could be the largest on US soil since 11 September 2001. He reportedly discussed using assault rifles, knives and other weapons to carry out the attack.
“Khan repeatedly instructed the undercovers (UCs) to obtain AR-style assault rifles, ammunition, and other materials to carry out the attacks, and identified locations in City-1 where the attacks would take place. Khan also told the UCs that he had identified a human smuggler who would help him cross the border from Canada into the United States for the attack,” the statement noted.
Pakistani National Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Commit Isis-Inspired Attack at Jewish Center in New York https://t.co/VQ8oVcomgs
— National Security Division, U.S. Dept of Justice (@DOJNatSec) April 8, 2026
In or about August 2024, Khan changed his target to New York City, telling the UCs that the location would now be a prominent Jewish religious center in Brooklyn, New York (Location-1), it added.
“Khan conveyed that he hoped to carry out this attack on or around October 7, 2024 — which Khan recognised as the one-year anniversary of the brutal and deadly terrorist attacks in Israel carried out by the foreign terrorist organisation Hamas on October 7, 2023. Khan told the UCs that ‘New York is perfect to target Jews’ because it has the ‘largest Jewish population in America’, and, as such, “even if we don’t attack a[n] Event[,] we could rack up easily a lot of Jews.”
Khan attempted to enter the United States in September 2024 with the help of a human smuggler but was stopped near the border in Ormstown, Canada, about 12 miles from the US. He later pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to commit acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries.
The investigation involved the FBI’s New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago Field Offices, the US Customs and Border Protection, and the Justice Department’s National Security Division, as well as Canadian authorities including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Officials from the FBI, NYPD, as well as Canadian authorities highlighted the case as an example of international cooperation in counterterrorism efforts. “This case demonstrates our ongoing commitment to protect communities from terrorism and hate-based violence,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)
Also Read: From caliphate to cyberspace: ISIS exploits digital platforms to endure and inspire