An individual living illegally in Louisiana has been accused of involvement in the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led assault on Israel.

According to federal prosecutors, Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub Al-Muhtadi allegedly armed himself and organized a group to infiltrate southern Israel from the Gaza Strip during the violent attack, which resulted in the deaths of over 1,200 individuals.

The attack also saw more than 250 people, including numerous American citizens, taken hostage by Hamas fighters.

A recently unsealed criminal complaint reveals that Al-Muhtadi held a senior position within the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a Gaza-based terrorist organization that collaborated with Hamas during the assault.

The complaint details that on the morning of October 7, 2023, Al-Muhtadi became aware of the impending Hamas invasion, armed himself, rallied accomplices, and crossed into Israel with the intent to support Hamas’s terrorist activities.

But when he later applied for a visa to the United States, Al-Muhtadi denied he had ever been involved in terrorist activities – and he became a legal permanent resident in 2024.

Al-Muhtadi was most recently living in Lafayette, Louisiana, where he worked at a restaurant prior to his arrest on Thursday.

He now faces charges for visa fraud and for conspiring to provide support for a foreign terrorist organization, though more charges may be forthcoming as an investigation continues.

Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub Al-Muhtadi has been arrested for allegedly participating in the October 7 attack on Israel and lying about it on his application for a visa to the United States

Al-Muhtadi, left, was reportedly a high-ranking member of the New Resistance Brigades

The criminal complaint, obtained by the Daily Mail, details how Al-Muhtadi’s social media shows he had a yearslong affiliation with the New Resistance Brigades.

He was seen in photographs wearing the red headband of the group, and on December 12, 2019, Al-Muhtadi sent another social media user a message containing what appears to be a photograph of an official New Resistance Brigades form on official letterhead bearing his signature, according to the complaint.

Then in September 2020, Al-Muhtadi sent another social media user the message, ‘This is my group,’ along with a photo of militants wearing headbands featuring the terrorist group’s logo.

When the other social media user asked how many there are, he allegedly replied: ‘I have 15 young men.’

By May 27, 2022, another user sent Al-Muhtadi the message: ‘The battalions’ youth are ready,’ the criminal complaint claims.

Other photos allegedly showed him donning a vest labeled ‘Wahdat al-Nukhba,’ which is the group’s elite unit.

‘Based on my training and experience, I believe these messages and communications indicate that al-Muhtadi was sufficiently senior in the NRB to have been tasked with training younger militants,’ Supervisory Special Agent Alexandria M. Thomas O’Donnell wrote in her affidavit, which was submitted to a federal judge on October 6 of this year.

She serves on a task force investigating the murder and kidnapping of American citizens during the attack two years ago.

Photos shared on social media allegedly showed him donning a vest labeled ‘Wahdat al-Nukhba,’ which is the group’s elite unit

He also shared photos with his colleagues of weapons he said were at his home

Al-Muhtadi also had an apparent history of engaging in attacks on Israel.

According to the complaint, he sent another social media user a message describing a New Resistance Brigades attack on a military outpost in the country, near the Gaza border.

‘I swear by God, we burned them!’ he allegedly wrote. ‘This battle is different for us. God is the helper! Long live the resistance.’

In phone calls the US government obtained from October 7, 2023, Al-Muhtadi also ‘described his knowledge of Hamas’s attack on Israel; his intention to participate in that attack; his effort to gather manpower and munitions before crossing the border; his travel towards Israel; his efforts to avoid detection and his eventual crossing over the border into Israel,’ O’Donnell wrote.

She said that after Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas, called for ‘the masses’ to join in on the attack, Al-Muhtadi told his associates to ‘get ready’ and ‘bring the rifles’ and a ‘full magazine.’

He even allegedly told his colleagues that ‘there is kidnapping and it’s a game, which will be a good one.’

‘If things go the way they should, Syria will take part, Lebanon will take part… and it’s going to be a third world war,’ Al-Muhtadi reportedly said.

The FBI further alleged that Al-Muhtadi coordinated an armed group to travel into Israel, and that during the attack, his phone pinged a cell tower near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, an Israeli village were nearly 60 people were killed and 16 were kidnapped.

The victims included one kidnapped American citizen, and at least four murdered US citizens, O’Donnell noted.

Al-Muhtadi entered the United States in 2024, under the Biden administration

He reportedly led a group of terrorists into Kibbutz Kfar Aza, an Israeli village were nearly 60 people were killed and 16 were kidnapped

Less than a year after the attack, the affidavit says Al-Muhtadi submitted an electronic US visa application in Cairo.

In the application, he denied serving in any paramilitary organization or having ever engaged in terrorist activities.

The application said he had intended to live in Tulsa, Oklahoma and work in ‘car repairs or food services.’

He then entered the United States in September 2024, under the Biden administration.

Once he entered the US, the affidavit says, an associate advised Al-Muhtadi not to contact anyone from the paramilitary group because he was under surveillance, and to avoid posting on social media in support of Hamas. 

The FBI says Al-Muhtadi responded that he could post whatever he wanted, including pictures of Hamas leaders, and he would be safe.

He had been living in Tulsa through May but by early June had relocated to Lafayette.

An unidentified FBI agent then met repeatedly with Al-Muhtadi in Lafayette from July to September this year. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Al-Muhtadi’s arrest, vowing justice

The alleged terrorist appeared in court for the first time on Friday, KATC reports.

He participated in proceedings with the help of a public defender and a translator, indicating that he had not read the affidavit – prompting the judge to read it aloud. 

When he was then asked if he understood what he was accused of, Al-Muhtadi said he did as he maintained his innocence.

He is now being held at Calcasieu Correctional Center.

‘After hiding out in the United States, this monster has been found and charged with participating in the atrocities of October 7 – the single deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust,’ Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement.

‘While nothing can fully heal the scars left by Hamas’ brutal attack, this Department’s Joint Task Force October 7 is dedicated to finding and prosecuting those responsible for that horrific day, including the murder of dozens of American citizens,’ she continued.

‘We will continue to stand by Jewish Americans and Jewish people around the world against anti-Semitism and terrorism in all its forms.’

Assistant Attorney General for national Security John A Eisenberg added that Al-Muhtadi’s arrest is ‘the first step in bringing to justice those responsible for harming Americans on that day.’

US Attorney Zachary A. Keller also said: ‘Let this arrest serve as a reminder, both that those who perpetrate acts of terrorism cannot evade justice by hiding in our communities and that state, local and federal law enforcement… are working tirelessly to bring these people to justice.’ 

Louisiana state officials also celebrated the news of Al-Muhtadi’s arrest.

‘Justice will be served,’ Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry vowed on X, suggesting that Al-Muhtadi might be sent to the newly opened immigration detention wing of the state’s maximum security prison, known as ‘Louisiana Lockup.’

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murill also described the October 7 attack as ‘evil personified.’

‘If what is alleged is true, this person needs to be prosecuted to the absolute fullest extent of the law,’ she said.

‘If the death penalty is available, the federal government should seek it. If state charges can be lodged, we will seek them.

‘I continue to pray for the victims of Hamas’s evil actions that day and afterward,’ she noted.

US Sen. Bill Cassidy additionally released a statement on social media thanking law enforcement for their work.

‘Anyone involved in the October 7th attacks committed a crime against humanity and deserves to be behind bars.’