LAFAYETTE, LA – The Department of Justice announced the arrest of Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub Al-Muhtadi, 33, a native of Gaza currently residing in Lafayette, Louisiana, for his alleged involvement in the Hamas-led terrorist attack against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
According to court documents, Al-Muhtadi is accused of being an operative for the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine’s (DFLP) military wing, known as the National Resistance Brigades. Prosecutors allege that Al-Muhtadi armed himself, recruited others, and entered Israel during the October 7 attack, where his phone was traced near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, one of the communities heavily targeted by Hamas and its affiliates.
Al-Muhtadi allegedly falsified information on his U.S. visa application, concealing his connections to Hamas, DFLP, and his participation in the attack. He entered the United States on Sept. 12, 2024, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection records.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi said, “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.”
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg stated that Al-Muhtadi’s arrest “is the first public step in bringing to justice those responsible for harming Americans on that day.”
U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller for the Western District of Louisiana added that the case serves as a reminder that “those who perpetrate acts of terrorism cannot evade justice by hiding in our communities.”
The case is being investigated by the Department of Justice’s Joint Task Force October 7 (JTF 10-7), the FBI New Orleans Field Office, and Israeli authorities, with assistance from the Louisiana State Police, Lafayette Police Department, and Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office.
