Afghanistan Times
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KABUL – In a chilling reminder of the persistent threat posed by extremist ideology, 18-year-old Afghan national Abdullah Haji Zada has pleaded guilty to conspiring to carry out an Islamic State-inspired terror attack in the U.S. on election day. Arrested in October 2024 near Oklahoma City alongside co-conspirator Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, Zada admitted to attempting to acquire firearms for the plot. Though a minor at the time of arrest, he will be sentenced as an adult and faces up to 15 years in prison. He has agreed to return to Afghanistan upon release. Tawhedi, a former CIA security contractor in Afghanistan, remains in custody awaiting trial. Authorities say his mother may have ties to ISIS, and his unidentified relative was recently detained in France over a separate terror plot. The case has reignited scrutiny of post-2021 refugee vetting procedures and highlights the Islamic State’s ongoing reach, with at least six more U.S. arrests and a deadly New Year’s attack linked to the group in recent months.
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