A delegation of senior Republican lawmakers from Louisiana is demanding answers from the US Department of Homeland Security after the arrest of an alleged Hamas terrorist who had been residing in the state, JNS reported.
Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub Al-Muhtadi, 33, a native of the Gaza Strip, was arrested on October 16 for his alleged involvement in Hamas’s October 7, 2023 invasion of southern Israel.
In a letter sent Tuesday, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senators Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, and Representatives Clay Higgins and Julia Letlow called for a full briefing on how Al-Muhtadi entered the United States and settled in Lafayette, Louisiana.
The lawmakers emphasized that his entry occurred “in 2024 during the Biden administration’s dangerous open borders policy.”
“It is disgusting that Democrats’ failed open border policies allowed this to happen, putting our national security and the lives of Louisiana families at great risk,” Scalise said in a statement. “I’m grateful President Trump and the FBI are taking swift action to keep Americans safe from this terrorist.”
According to public reports and filings from the US Department of Justice, Al-Muhtadi allegedly concealed his affiliations on his visa application in order to gain entry into the country.
During the deadly October 7 attack, his phone pinged near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, where dozens of Israelis were murdered and 19 kidnapped. The FBI says he coordinated an armed group’s movement into Israel.
Despite warnings from an associate to avoid contact with the paramilitary group and refrain from posting Hamas-related content due to surveillance, Al-Muhtadi reportedly responded that he could post “whatever he wanted,” including images of Hamas leaders.
Al-Muhtadi faces charges of visa fraud and conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.