Arrest of Afghan in France Linked to U.S. Terror Plot

French authorities have arrested an Afghan national with suspected links to a terror plot targeting the United States, raising concerns about international security threats.

French authorities have arrested a 22-year-old Afghan national suspected of planning a terrorist attack at a public location, AFP reported on Saturday. The report cited the country’s anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office (PNAT). Officials believe this case is connected to an uncovered plot related to U.S. election day earlier in the week.

According to French prosecutors, the suspect is believed to support the ideology of Islamic State (previously known as IS or ISIS) and had been plotting a “violent action” at either a football stadium or shopping center in France.

Early on Tuesday, a man along with two other suspects was detained in the Occitanie region of southwestern France. All three individuals are of Afghan descent and were taken to Paris for questioning. However, two have since been released.

The individual in custody, reportedly originating from a Tajik community in Afghanistan and residing in France for approximately three years, is said to have been discussing his plan on Telegram. His name remains undisclosed.

PNAT asserts that it has discovered evidence indicating the detainee’s radicalization and adherence to “the ideology of the Islamic State.” They stated that the suspect has been charged with terrorist criminal association and is currently held in provisional detention.

The agency informed AFP that the case is “linked” to last Monday’s arrest of an Afghan migrant in the US. The suspect, 27-year-old Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, has been living in the United States since 2021 and is currently awaiting a decision on his immigration status.

According to US prosecutors, Tawhedi and several unnamed co-conspirators, allegedly affiliated with the Islamic State, were planning a terrorist attack in the country on election day (November 5). Investigators discovered that Tawhedi frequently consumed Islamist propaganda and donated approximately $540 in cryptocurrency to an unidentified charity in Syria suspected of channeling funds to the Islamic State. Additionally, he was reportedly communicating via Telegram with someone identified by the FBI as an Islamic State recruiter.

A source familiar with the French case indicated that US authorities provided information related to the Tawhedi investigation to their French counterparts, resulting in arrests in Occitanie. Additional details about the alleged terror plot in France or connections between the American and French cases have not been disclosed.

On Tuesday, the US Justice Department announced that Tawhedi has been charged with conspiring to provide material support to the Islamic State and planning to carry out an act of terrorism.