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California Man Admits Funding ISIS and Stockpiling Explosive Device

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A Long Beach man pleaded guilty today to federal criminal charges for sending a dozen payments to suspected members of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a designated foreign terrorist organization, and for illegally possessing a homemade bomb.

Mark Lorenzo Villanueva, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Villanueva has been in federal custody since August 2025.

According to his plea agreement, Villanueva began communicating in February 2025 over a social media messaging platform with an individual who represented himself to be an ISIS fighter living in Syria. This individual told Villanueva how to send him money in Syria.

Based on these instructions, Villanueva sent more than $1,600 with the understanding that the money would be spent on ammunition, weapons, and other supplies for ISIS to conduct operations. Villanueva also discussed conducting operations for ISIS in the United States. (Read more from “California Man Admits Funding ISIS and Stockpiling Explosive Device” HERE)

Pentagon Increases Airstrikes as Terrorists Pose ‘Direct Threat’ to American Safety

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The U.S. stepped up airstrikes in Somalia in January, targeting al-Shabab and the local affiliate of the Islamic State group, ISIS, according to U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).

In a Jan. 12 release, AFRICOM said U.S. forces, working with the Somali federal government, carried out airstrikes against al-Shabab militants.

AFRICOM said the operation was part of ongoing efforts to “degrade the group’s ability to threaten the U.S. homeland, U.S. forces and Americans overseas.”

Airstrikes against ISIS—Somalia were also reported on Jan. 11 and Jan. 9 in northern Somalia, including the Golis Mountains region of Puntland, southeast of Bosaso.

Additional airstrikes targeting al-Shabab were reported on Jan. 8, including one in the vicinity of Buur Heybo, about 154 kilometers northwest of Mogadishu. (Read more from “Pentagon Increases Airstrikes as Terrorists Pose ‘Direct Threat’ to American Safety” HERE)

‘We Will Find You, And We Will Kill You’: Unclassified Video Shows Trump-Ordered Strike On Terror Group’s Senior ‘Attack Planner’

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The U.S. military struck Islamic State terrorists in the Horn of Africa on Saturday, killing several of them, Department of Defense officials said.

“At President [Donald] Trump’s direction and in coordination with the Federal Government of Somalia, we authorized U.S. Africa Command to conduct coordinated airstrikes today targeting ISIS-Somalia operatives in the Golis mountains,” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said.

The strikes killed multiple terrorists without harming civilians, according to the U.S. Africa Command’s (AFRICOM) initial assessment. AFRICOM said it “takes great measures to prevent civilian harm” to “promote a more secure and stable Africa.” The Command added that it would continue to evaluate the results of the strikes but would not release the specifics of the operation for security reasons.

Trump said the strikes targeted a “Senior ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham] Attack Planner and other terrorists he recruited and led in Somalia” and killed many of the terrorists in their hideouts in caves without harming civilians. (Read more from “‘We Will Find You, And We Will Kill You’: Unclassified Video Shows Trump-Ordered Strike On Terror Group’s Senior ‘Attack Planner'” HERE)

Resurfaced Video Shows Houston-Based Muslim Children Pledging to Be Islamic Soldiers, Martyrs

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After a New Orleans terrorist attack by an ISIS supporter from Houston, Texas, and amid intensifying warnings of Islamic terrorist threats within the U.S., a resurfaced clip showing hundreds of American children in Houston wearing traditional Islamic dress, chanting references to Iran’s supreme leader, pledging allegiance to him, and praising martyrdom has reignited concerns over growing homegrown Islamic extremism.

The chilling video, aired by Iranian state media in 2022, raises concerns about the spread of various forms of Islamic extremism within the U.S., highlighting ideological influences that extend beyond specific groups like ISIS or Iran’s regime.

In the two-minute clip that was first posted on the Islamic Education Center of Houston’s Facebook page but subsequently removed from YouTube, the Houston-area children — donning headbands and waving flags — are seen singing a trending Iranian religious song, some parts in English, as they swear allegiance to the regime’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to the center’s flier promoting the event for “boys and girls ages 4-14,” the song is described as “an expression of one’s love for the Imam of our age.”

Lyrics of the chant, titled “Salam Farmandeh” or “Salutations, commander,” include expressions of desires to become child soldiers for Khamenei as well as the taking of an oath to become a martyr.

(Read more from “Resurfaced Video Shows Houston-Based Muslim Children Pledging to Be Islamic Soldiers, Martyrs” HERE)

‘She Was the Sweetest Person’: First Details of New Orleans Terror Victims Emerge

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The first details of the New Year’s terror attack in New Orleans are beginning to emerge now that the suspect has been identified as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, an American man living in Texas.

One victim is 18-year-old Nikyra Cheyenne Dedeaux, who sneaked out to New Orleans on Tuesday from Gulfport, Mississippi, along with her cousin and a friend, 18-year-old Zion Parsons, to celebrate the New Year on Bourbon Street.

She was one of at least 15 fatalities after Jabbar drove a pickup truck down the French Quarter Street in an act of terrorism.

“I just want to see my baby,” Nikyra’s mother Melissa Dedeaux, 40, told Nola.com. “She was the sweetest person. She would give you anything, anything.” . . .

Another victim of the terror attack is 37-year-old Reggie Hunter, a Baton Rouge father of two who reportedly decided on a whim to head to New Orleans for New Year’s Eve.

(Read more from “‘She Was the Sweetest Person’: First Details of New Orleans Terror Victims Emerge” HERE)

Federal Jury Convicts Man for Using Cryptocurrency Scheme to Fund ISIS

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A federal jury convicted a Virginia man for using a cryptocurrency scheme to funnel money to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) on Friday, according to a Department of Justice (DOJ) press release.

Mohammed Azharuddin Chhipa, 35, had been charged with providing material support to the terrorist group, the Justice Department said.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, from at least October 2019 through October 2022, Chhipa collected and sent money to female ISIS members in Syria to benefit ISIS in various ways, including by financing the escape of female ISIS members from prison camps and supporting ISIS fighters. Chhipa would raise funds online on various social media accounts. He would receive electronic transfers of funds and travel hundreds of miles to collect funds by hand. He would then convert the money to cryptocurrency and send it to Turkey, where it was smuggled to ISIS members in Syria.

His primary co-conspirator was a British-born ISIS member residing in Syria who was involved in raising funds for prison escapes, terrorist attacks, and ISIS fighters. Over the course of the conspiracy, the defendant sent out over $185,000 in of cryptocurrency.

The jury found Chhipa guilty of one count of conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization and four counts of providing and attempting to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization. Chhipa faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison per count. A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for May 5, 2025. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

(Read more from “Federal Jury Convicts Man for Using Cryptocurrency Scheme to Fund ISIS” HERE)

Feds ID 400 Migrants Smuggled Into U.S. by ISIS-Affiliated Network —With the Whereabouts of 50 Unknown

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The Department of Homeland Security has identified over 400 migrants who were brought to the US from Central Asia and other places by an ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network — and the whereabouts of more than 50 of them are unknown, according to an unsettling report.

More than 150 of the migrants have been arrested, but the locations of another 50 remain unknown, three US officials told NBC News, adding that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement is looking to arrest those involved on immigration charges.

“In this case, it was the information that suggested a potential tie to ISIS because of some of the individuals involved in [smuggling migrants to the border] that led us to want to take extra care,” a senior Biden administration official told the outlet, “and out of an abundance of caution make sure that we exercised our authority in the most expansive and appropriate way to mitigate risk because of this potential connection being made.”

The official noted that since ICE started arresting migrants brought into the US by the smuggling group several months ago, no information has tied them to any threats to the US.

Many of the over 400 migrants involved had crossed the southern border and were released into the country by Customs and Border Protection because they were not on the government’s terrorism watchlist, the three anonymous officials said. (Read more from “Feds ID 400 Migrants Smuggled Into U.S. by ISIS-Affiliated Network —With the Whereabouts of 50 Unknown” HERE)

Former CENTCOM Commander Warns: ISIS Threat to U.S. Escalating Due to Biden’s Foreign Policy

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Former U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Gen. Frank McKenzie said during an interview over the weekend that the threat that ISIS poses to the U.S. homeland is becoming serious because of President Joe Biden’s foreign policy.

McKenzie made the remarks during a Sunday interview on ABC News’ “This Week” with Martha Raddatz where he was asked about the recent ISIS terrorist attack in Moscow.

“General, your CENTCOM successor, General Michael Kurilla, said just days before the Moscow attack that ISIS-K, quote, ‘retains the capability and will to attack U.S. and Western interests abroad in as little as six months and with little or no warning’,” Raddatz said.

“What’s your confidence in that intelligence?” she asked.

“I think General Kurilla is spot on with that assessment,” McKenzie responded. “Here’s the problem. Again, we go back to ISIS-K. If you can keep pressure on them that they’re in their homeland and their base, it makes it hard for them to conduct these types of attacks.” (Read more from “Former CENTCOM Commander Warns: ISIS Threat to U.S. Escalating Due to Biden’s Foreign Policy” HERE)

House Intelligence: ISIS-K Terror Threat Growing After Moscow Attack (VIDEO)

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House Intelligence Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said over the weekend that the threat of terrorist attacks from ISIS-K is growing after the Islamic terrorist group carried out a large attack late last week in Russia.

The remarks from McCaul, which he made on CBS News’ “Face The Nation,” come as Russian officials continued to search for bodies in a concert hall outside Moscow where four heavily armed gunmen opened fire before setting the building on fire.

“This attack in Moscow was carried out by ISIS-K, a group that typically emanates out of Afghanistan,” said host Margaret Brennan. “We know the U.S. had advanced warning. From what you know, is there an ongoing threat in Eurasia, and are U.S. interests a target?”

(Read more from “House Intelligence: ISIS-K Terror Threat Growing After Moscow Attack (VIDEO)” HERE)

Son Of Afghan Migrants Arrested In Colorado, Charged With Trying To Join ISIS: Report

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The son of Afghan migrants was arrested by federal law enforcement officials this week for allegedly trying to board a flight to the Middle East so he could join the Islamic State (ISIS), a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).

Humzah Mashkoor, 18, from Colorado, was arrested on Monday at Denver International Airport before he was able to get on a flight headed to “to the United Arab Emirates, where he intended to stay until he continued on to either Afghanistan or Syria to serve as a fighter for ISIS,” the Department of Justice said in a statement.

He was charged with attempting to provide material support to an FTO.

Authorities began monitoring Mashkoor in November 2021 after he reportedly expressed support online for ISIS and began to use social media to connect with ISIS supporters, according to Denver7 News.

The following year, he began communicating with multiple undercover FBI agents who were posing as supporters of the terrorist organization and expressed his “intent to join ISIS as a fighter, provide money to the organization and recruit other supporters,” the report said. He told them that he had been to Afghanistan before his family was forced to leave. (Read more from “Son Of Afghan Migrants Arrested In Colorado, Charged With Trying To Join ISIS: Report” HERE)

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