Man Charged with Plotting Attack on NY Jewish Center Anniversary of Oct. 7

A Pakistani man was arrested in Canada this week and charged with plotting a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn on the first anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack that ignited the recent Middle East conflict, U.S. federal authorities revealed on Friday.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, who also goes by the name Shahzeb Jadoon, attempted to travel from Canada to New York City with the intent to kill “as many Jewish people as possible” in the name of ISIS.

Khan, 20, was arrested on September 4 and charged with attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham.

“Jewish communities—like all communities in this country—should not live in fear of being targeted by a hate-driven terrorist attack,” Garland said in a press release.

It remains unclear whether Khan has legal representation, where exactly he is being held in Canada, and when he might be extradited to the U.S. to face the charges.

Spokespersons for the U.S. Justice Department and the Manhattan federal prosecutor’s office, which is leading the case, referred inquiries to Canadian law enforcement. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) confirmed in a statement that Khan is due to appear in the Superior Court of Justice in Montreal on September 13.

“This planned antisemitic attack on Jewish people in the U.S. is despicable, and there is no room for such hate-motivated crimes in Canada,” said RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme in the statement.

U.S. authorities said Khan began sharing ISIS propaganda and publicly supporting the terror group in social media posts and through encrypted messaging apps starting in November 2022.

During communications with two undercover law enforcement officers, Khan disclosed plans to establish an ISIS “offline cell” to carry out attacks on Jewish targets in the U.S. He specifically mentioned targeting “Israeli Jewish chabads” and discussed acquiring assault rifles, ammunition, and hunting knives, according to the Justice Department.

Khan allegedly discussed timing the attack to coincide with either the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas assault or the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur on October 11, authorities added. He eventually decided on New York due to its large Jewish population, even sharing a photograph of the area inside the targeted Jewish center in Brooklyn.

In his online messages, Khan referred to the Brooklyn location, which is not identified in court documents, as the “world headquarters of ultra orthodox Hasidic Jews,” according to federal officials.

A spokesperson for Chabad-Lubavitch, a prominent Hasidic Jewish organization based in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights, declined to comment on Friday.

Khan started his journey from the Toronto area towards the U.S. on September 6, traveling in a car with other passengers, according to a federal complaint unsealed on Friday. The group switched vehicles near Napanee and Montreal before being stopped near Ormstown, Quebec, approximately 12 miles from the U.S.-Canada border.