LA Resident Accused of Assisting Hamas in 7 October Assault on Israel, US Authorities Say
US federal attorneys have accused a LA inhabitant of participating in the October 7 raid by the militant faction on Israel, according to newly unsealed court documents.
The defendant, thirty-three, reportedly armed him and became part of a paramilitary unit that engaged together with Hamas in the 2023's incursion that claimed the lives of over a thousand Israelis, sparking 24 months of conflict that killed thousands more.
A year following the attack, he allegedly travelled to the US on a fake entry permit and obtained status as a long-term resident.
Mr al-Muhtadi was indicted with supplying, trying to provide or plotting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and the fraud and misuse of a visa or other documents.
Reported Role with Armed Group
Mr al-Muhtadi was reportedly an operative of the NRB, the armed branch of the DFLP, as stated in the complaint filed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
He is accused of organizing a "unit of militants" to cross into Israel upon hearing about the raid and requested one individual to "carry the firearms", court documents indicate.
The suspect dispatched messages asking other persons to provide a bulletproof vest for a different individual and rounds, authorities claim.
Hours following the October 7 assault began, his phone connected to a cell tower near Kibbutz Kfar Aza, the location of a deadly event, the records said.
Judicial Proceedings and Defense
The legal document said that the accused rejected ever having been involved in acts of terror on his US immigration form.
Upon arriving to the US, he resided in a handful of places before settling in the Louisiana city, where he was employed in a local restaurant.
He was taken into custody on the past Thursday, the Justice Department said.
In a court appearance in LA on Friday, he was questioned if he comprehended the allegations against him, an interpreter translated his response as "affirmative, but there are a lot of things mentioned in this document that are so incorrect, I'm innocent", according to reports.
The court filings do not charge the defendant of specific crimes or homicides. Federal attorneys have previously indicted senior individuals of the group with the fatalities of American citizens on 7 October.
