A New Jersey man, inspired by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, was arrested in Kenya, after allegedly seeking to join terrorist forces in Africa, authorities said Friday.
Karrem Nasr, a 23-year-old Garden State resident and U.S. citizen who also went under the name Ghareeb Al-Muhaji, was taken into custody in Nairobi on Dec. 14 before being taken to the United States on Thursday, federal prosecutors said.
Nasr, “motivated by the heinous terrorist attack perpetrated by Hamas” on Oct. 7, “devoted himself to waging violent jihad against America and its allies,” according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office out of the Southern District of New York.
The suspect “was prepared to kill and be killed” and “specifically aspired to be a martyr for the jihadi cause,” according to a criminal complaint.
He sought to attack “evil America,” which he called the “head of the snake,” according to the complaint.
Nasr specifically wanted to join al-Shabab and traveled from Egypt to Kenya on Dec. 14 “for purposes of ultimately joining and training with” the militant group, the FBI agent wrote.
He had planned to travel to Somalia to join al–Shabab before he was picked up by Kenyan authorities on Dec. 14, officials said.
Nasr has been charged with one count of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
His most recently listed U.S. address is in Lawrence Township, New Jersey. Messages left on phone numbers associated with that address were not immediately responded to Friday.
It wasn’t immediately clear Friday afternoon whether Nasr had hired or been assigned a criminal defense lawyer to speak on his behalf.
Nasr allegedly told an FBI “confidential source” that he was born and raised in the United States but had moved to Egypt this year to study Arabic.
The suspect’s mother had been pressuring him to come back to America and Nasr said his parents had no idea about his hopes to join jihadists, the FBI said.
“They want their children to see life, be doctors, engineers, and make a lot of money,” Nasr told the FBI source on Dec. 10, according to the complaint. “As I said, they do not want their children be mujahedeen and scholars. She wants me to come back to America to continue my education and work.”
Madelyn Urabe contributed.
