Afghan National Arrested for Alleged Bomb Construction Video in Texas

An Afghan national was arrested on Saturday in the United States after allegedly posting a TikTok video that appeared to show him constructing a bomb. This incident comes shortly after a separate shooting case in Washington DC. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identified the individual as Mohammad Dawood Alokozay, who reportedly named the Fort Worth area in Texas as a target in his video.

Court records indicate that Alokozay has been charged at the state level with making a terroristic threat. He entered the United States through Operation Allies Welcome, a resettlement initiative launched by the Biden administration after the withdrawal of US military forces from Afghanistan in 2021, which saw the Taliban regain control of the country. Alokozay was granted lawful permanent residency on September 7, 2022. Following his arrest, the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency issued a detainer for him.

Alokozay was taken into custody by Texas authorities in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as part of a Joint Terrorism Task Force. His arrest followed closely after another Afghan national, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was implicated in a shooting incident in Washington DC, which resulted in the death of one National Guard soldier and left another in critical condition. Lakanwal also arrived in the US under Operation Allies Welcome and had been living in Washington state.

Lakanwal applied for asylum in December of the previous year and received approval in April. Reports indicate that he had no known criminal history prior to the shooting. CIA Director John Ratcliffe later confirmed that Lakanwal had previously collaborated with the US Government, including the CIA, as part of a partner force in Kandahar.

These two incidents have raised concerns regarding the vetting process associated with Operation Allies Welcome. A report from the DHS Inspector General last year highlighted significant data discrepancies within the programme, noting that some individuals had been assigned multiple identification numbers or their names were recorded incorrectly. Such issues complicate the ability to track biographical and criminal history data, and the report indicated that DHS lacked a systematic method for monitoring the expiration of parole for evacuees.

In the wake of the shooting in Washington DC, former President Donald Trump stated that his administration would re-evaluate all Afghan nationals who entered the US during President Biden’s tenure. Trump claimed that the incident underscored deficiencies in migration policies and announced an indefinite suspension of immigration requests from Afghan nationals. Furthermore, he ordered a halt on issuing visas to individuals holding Afghan passports.

The former president also imposed a broader pause on immigration from what he referred to as 'Third World countries,' which encompasses several regions in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. This move aligns with his strict immigration stance, which has garnered support from his political base. Earlier this month, Trump also indicated a potential shift in his approach to H1-B visas, which are often sought by skilled foreign workers.