Man, 18, Charged With Plotting Terror Attack on Israel's NYC Consulate

NEW YORK CITY — An 18-year-old Virginia college student has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly plotting a mass-casualty attack on the Israeli consulate in New York City, authorities announced Friday.

Abdullah Ezzeldin Taha Mohamed Hassan, a freshman at George Mason University, is accused of distributing pro-ISIS material and information on weapons of mass destruction online, officials said.

He has been charged with the distribution of information relating to explosives, destructive devices, and weapons of mass destruction in furtherance of the commission of a federal crime of violence, according to prosecutors.

Hassan operated "several pro-ISIS and Al Qaeda accounts that promoted violence against Jews," according to court documents.

The 18-year-old also tried to recruit others for a planned attack and shared information about explosives and guns, NBC News reported.

The FBI began investigating Hassan in May, after the Fairfax County Police Department caught wind of Hassan's "radical and terrorist-leaning behavior" on X.

An undercover FBI informant made contact with Hassan, on one of his X accounts in August, and allegedly communicated for several months. He shared he picked the Consulate General of Israel as a target.

The suspect was a suspect majoring in information technology, the school disclosed Friday. He did not live on campus.

"Although the student did not live on campus, he has been barred from entering university property," GMU Vice President Paul Allvin said in a statement. "As criminal proceedings progress, the university will take appropriate action on student code of conduct violations."