A 30-year-old Afghan migrant admitted under the Biden administration’s controversial Operation Allies Welcome program has been federally charged with threatening to conduct a suicide bombing attack in Texas, exposing what critics call catastrophic vetting failures that endanger American lives.
Documented Threat Captured on Social Media
Mohammad Dawood Alokozay recorded a TikTok video on November 23, 2025, speaking in Dari while making explicit threats to build explosives and conduct a suicide attack targeting Americans in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. The video showed Alokozay gesturing angrily while referencing specific Taliban methods for constructing improvised explosive devices. He directly stated his purpose for entering the United States was to carry out a suicide bombing attack on American citizens.
Texas Department of Public Safety alerted the FBI on November 25 after the threatening video circulated across multiple social media platforms. Using facial recognition technology, law enforcement identified and arrested Alokozay on November 26. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force moved swiftly, preventing what authorities believe was a genuine threat before the suspect could act. On December 2, the Justice Department announced federal charges against Alokozay for making threatening communications through interstate commerce.
Operation Allies Welcome: A Vetting System Under Scrutiny
Alokozay entered the United States through Operation Allies Welcome, the 2021 program established during the chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal that admitted approximately 76,000 Afghan nationals. The program was designed to provide refuge for Afghans who had worked with American forces and faced Taliban retaliation. However, the Alokozay arrest has intensified serious questions about the adequacy of background checks and ongoing security monitoring for individuals admitted through this large-scale operation.
The timing of this case compounds concerns about systematic vetting failures. On the same day Alokozay was arrested—November 26, 2025—National Guard members were shot near the White House by Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who also arrived through Operation Allies Welcome in 2021. One Guard member, Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, was killed in the shooting. Both individuals came through the same admission program, suggesting potential vulnerabilities in how the government screens and monitors Afghan nationals after entry.
Trump Administration’s Immediate Response
The Trump administration responded decisively to these security incidents by halting all asylum decisions and pausing visa issuance for individuals traveling on Afghan passports. This action directly addressed the national security concerns raised by two separate incidents involving Afghan nationals admitted under the previous administration’s policies. Attorney General Pam Bondi characterized the situation as clear evidence of what she called “the Biden administration’s vetting breakdown.”
Bondi stated: “The public safety threat created by the Biden administration’s vetting breakdown cannot be overstated. The Department of Justice will continue working with our federal and state partners to protect the American people from the prior administration’s dangerous incompetence.” FBI Special Agent Joseph Rothrock of the Dallas field office credited public vigilance, noting that “thanks to public reports of a threatening online video, the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force apprehended this individual before he could commit an act of violence.”
Law Enforcement Success and Ongoing Questions
The Alokozay case demonstrates modern law enforcement’s ability to identify and apprehend suspects using social media monitoring and facial recognition technology. However, it simultaneously raises troubling questions about how an individual making explicit threats to conduct terrorist attacks was admitted to the country in the first place. Alokozay remains held at a corrections center in Tarrant County, Texas, awaiting trial on federal charges for interstate threatening communications.
Sources:
Afghan Migrant Charged with Threatening Suicide Bombing in Texas
Federal Prosecutors Say Afghan National Made Bomb Threats in Video
Afghan Man Arrested After He Threatened to Bomb Building in Texas
Afghan National Arrested for Alleged Bomb Threat in Texas