The FBI has arrested Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub Al-Muhtadi, a Palestinian national living in Lafayette, Louisiana, on allegations that he took part in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and later lied on U.S. immigration forms.
A criminal complaint unsealed this week outlines potential charges of conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, plus visa fraud and related document offenses.
Al-Muhtadi was expected to make an initial appearance in federal court on Friday, October 17, 2025, according to reporting by AP News and a Justice Department release.
The Justice Department said he was arrested in the Western District of Louisiana and is being held pending proceedings, citing its press statement.
Allegations in the federal complaint
Court papers describe Al-Muhtadi as an operative of the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine’s military wing, the National Resistance Brigades. Investigators allege he coordinated with Hamas units during the incursion and crossed into Israel with others on the morning of October 7.
The complaint says his phone connected to a cellular tower near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, one of the communities devastated in the assault, and cites images and online activity indicating support for the operation.
According to an Associated Press account of the filing, the FBI links Al-Muhtadi to firearms training and to a Hamas-aligned paramilitary outfit. AP reports the complaint was prepared by an FBI supervisory special agent assigned to a task force investigating murders and kidnappings of Americans connected to the Oct. 7 violence.
Immigration trail to the United States
Prosecutors say Al-Muhtadi applied for a U.S. visa in Cairo in 2024 and denied any affiliation with militant groups, then entered the country on Sept. 12, 2024 through Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.
The Justice Department’s release says he submitted “materially false statements” about his affiliations and training, and that Customs and Border Protection records verify the entry date and routing. Officials say the case also involves alleged misuse of visas, permits and other documents.
The complaint further states that Al-Muhtadi indicated plans to live in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and work in “car repairs or food services.” He later lived in Tulsa before relocating to Lafayette, where he was employed at a local restaurant, according to coverage summarizing the FBI filing in The Washington Post.
The Post, citing AP reporting, adds that an agent met Al-Muhtadi multiple times in Lafayette during the summer of 2025 while monitoring his online activity.
