Washington.- A young Pakistani resident in Canada was arrested this week accused of planning a “terrorist attack” against Jews in New Yorkthe US Justice Department reported on Friday.
“The defendant is alleged to have planned to carry out a terrorist attack in New York City on or about October 7 of this year with the goal of murdering, in the name of ISIS (the Islamic State), as many Jewish people as possible,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
October 7 marks the first anniversary of the attack by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.
The accused, a 20-year-old man identified as Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, also known as Shahzeb Jadoon, was captured on Wednesday after revealing his plans in conversations with alleged accomplices who were actually undercover agents, according to the complaint.
According to authorities, Khan planned to travel to New York and carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn.
Khan was arrested by Canadian authorities in the town of Ormstown, about 19 kilometres from the US-Canada border. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
