An Afghan national who is on the U.S. terror watchlist is back in custody Friday, the Department of Homeland Security said, after he was previously captured at the U.S.-Mexico border and released twice onto American soil.
Mohammed Karwan is a member of Hezb-e-Islami, a group responsible for attacks in Afghanistan that killed at least nine American soldiers and civilians from 2013 to 2015, the terror watchlist indicates, NBC reported.
Karwan was first apprehended in March 2023 after crossing into the U.S. illegally near San Ysidro, California.
DHS officials tell Fox News that Karwan was not on the terror watchlist during that arrest and was referred to ICE, which released him on ATD – alternatives to detention. At the time of his apprehension, “there was not conclusive information” to match him to the FBI’s Terrorism Watch List, the officials said.
Eleven months later, in February 2024, Karwan was officially added to the FBI terror watchlist after “derogatory” new information was developed on him, multiple DHS sources told Fox News. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was notified, and ICE arrested him in San Antonio in February, the sources said.
Two weeks ago, during a court appearance, DHS prosecutors did not tell the federal immigration judge that the Afghan was on the terror watchlist or a possible national threat, only arguing that he was a possible flight risk. DHS cannot disclose what they do or don’t say in court, and is limited in what the department can tell a judge, senior DHS officials told Fox News.
