A man from Lebanon was apprehended while attempting to enter the United States through the southern border. He revealed that he is associated with Hezbollah, a group recognized as a terrorist organization by various global entities. His intentions were to travel to New York with plans to construct a bomb.
On March 9, near El Paso, Texas, Basel Bassel Ebbadi, aged 22, was detained by border patrol agents. When questioned about his purpose in the U.S., he shockingly responded with intentions of bomb-making, as detailed in a Border Patrol document obtained by The New York Post.
Ebbadi, holding Lebanese nationality, confirmed his affiliation with Hezbollah, an Islamist militant group based in Lebanon. The U.S. State Department has labeled Hezbollah as a foreign terrorist organization since 1997.
During a detailed interview, Ebbadi disclosed to the investigators that he underwent training with Hezbollah for seven years, focusing on jihad and the elimination of non-Muslims. He further mentioned his role in guarding weapon storage locations for an additional four years.
Ebbadi expressed his departure from Lebanon stemmed from his reluctance to take lives, stating the difficulty of leaving the organization once involved. This information came to light through documents from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Upon his illegal entry into the U.S. through the southern border, it was found that Ebbadi lacked proper documentation. He recounted being robbed at knifepoint in Costa Rica, as per ICE documents. He also admitted to using a false identity while in Sweden, Ecuador, and Panama.
His journey aimed at reaching New York, but he was detained and interviewed by the Tactical Terrorism Response Team due to his alarming admission of making terroristic threats.
A report released in February, based on Customs and Border Protection data, highlighted that over 30,000 migrants with potential ties to terrorism or other malicious activities were allowed into the United States in the past 15 months.
In January, ten retired FBI directors and counter-intelligence experts alerted Congress about the border crisis under President Joe Biden’s administration. They warned that it facilitated the entry of military-aged men from various parts of the world into the U.S., significantly compromising the nation’s safety and security.