Palestinian whose name appears on terror watchlist captured at southern border
A Palestinian migrant whose name appears on a terror watchlist for allegedly previously using “explosives/firearms” was caught at the southern border Monday, The Post can exclusively reveal.
Border Patrol agents caught Omar Shehada, 35, at the border in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, according to a leaked memo obtained by The Post.
The arrest of Shehada — who hails from the West Bank — comes just weeks after three other suspected Palestinian terrorists were caught at the California border.
One of those suspects allegedly had “salacious photos” on their phone — including a picture of a masked man holding an AK-47 rifle, sources told The Post.
It also comes almost a year after Border Patrol sent out a memo to its agents warning about Palestinian terrorists potentially coming across the border following the Oct. 7 terror attack.
“Individuals inspired by, or reacting to the current Israel-Hamas conflict may attempt travel to or from the area of hostilities in the Middle East via circuitous transit across the Southwest border,” the alert read.
It is not known which terror organization Shehada is allegedly affiliated with, but he’s listed on the terror watchlist for using “explosives/arms,” according to the Border Patrol memo.
His journey to the border started in Madrid last month, according to the memo. From there, he went to Bogota, Panama City and San Salvador.
Shehada remains in custody pending his removal from the US.
Under the Biden-Harris administration, the number of migrants on the terror watchlist caught at the US-Mexico border has skyrocketed.
Border agents caught 26 suspected terrorists at the southern border between October 2016 and September 2021. Then, between October 2021 and September 2022, they caught 98 suspected terrorists — followed by 169 over the same period the following year and 93 between October 2023 and June 2024, according to agency data.
