Canada nabs Pak national in major NYC terror plot

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said, in a release on Friday, that Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, was arrested in the town of Ormstown in the province of Quebec, on Wednesday. The investigation was undertaken in partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

“Khan was allegedly in the process of planning a deadly attack targeting Jewish citizens in the United States,” the release said. He has been charged with attempting to leave Canada to commit an offence for a terrorist group and participating in the activities of a terrorist group, among others.

He will appear before a court in Montreal on Friday.

According to a complaint filed against Khan, he also discussed “coordinated attacks” in India.

“The news of threats to the Jewish community is alarming. We will not tolerate any form of threats, harassment or violence targeting Jewish communities,” the release added.

This planned anti-Semitic attack against Jewish people in the US is deplorable and there is no place for such ideological and hate motivated crime in Canada. We are committed to keeping all Canadians safe and ask for the support of all Canadians to help prevent such threats,” RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme said.

In a post on X, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety Dominic LeBlanc said the arrest was a “product of the strong partnership” between RCMP and FBI. “Jewish Canadians and Jewish Americans deserve to be safe in their communities,” he added.

In a statement, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said that Khan, also known as Shazeb Jadoon, is alleged to have planned a terrorist attack in New York City around October 7th with the “stated goal of slaughtering, in the name of ISIS, as many Jewish people as possible.”

“Thanks to the investigative work of the FBI, and the quick action of our Canadian law enforcement partners, the defendant was taken into custody. As I said to Canada’s Minister of Public Safety yesterday, we are deeply grateful to our Canadian partners for their critical law enforcement actions in this matter,” he added.

A Department of Justice release said that Khan began posting on social media and communicating with others on an encrypted messaging application about his support for the Islamic State or ISIS in or about November 2023, and Khan distributed ISIS propaganda videos and literature. He began communicating with two undercover law enforcement officers.

During those conversations, he revealed he allegedly wanted to undertake the terror attack along with an unnamed America associate. He wanted the attacks to take place on October 7 and October 11. October 7 is the first anniversary of the deadly terror attacks by Hamas on Israel, while October 11 is Yom Kippur.