US law enforcement foils plot to assassinate Palestinian American activist | New York

Law enforcement officers foiled a plot to assassinate New York-based Palestinian American activist Nerdeen Kiswani and arrested a 26-year old man in connection with the plan.

Kiswani wrote in post on X that late on Thursday, the FBI joint terrorism taskforce informed her that a plot against her life was “about to” take place, and that agents had conducted an operation in Hoboken, New Jersey, in connection to it.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed on Friday and a Department of Justice press release, Alexander Heifler, 26, was arrested on Thursday night on charges of unlawfully possessing and making firearms.

The complaint describes a weeks-long sting by an undercover officer who, at one point, infiltrated a group video call in which Heifler asked for assistance with “molotovs”. Heifler later met with the undercover officer on multiple occasions, at one point telling him that he had an address for the “victim”, which the complaint does not name. The officer was at Heifler’s residence when he assembled about eight molotov cocktails on Thursday.

An NYPD spokesperson confirmed to the Guardian that the undercover agent was an NYPD officer.

Kiswani did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Guardian. An attorney for Heifler could not be immediately identified.

“For months, Zionist organizations like Betar and politicians like Randy Fine have encouraged violence against my family and me,” Kiswani wrote on X. “I will have more to say as additional details come to light. I will not stop speaking up for the people of Palestine. Thank you for your support.”

Kiswani recently sued the far-right pro-Israel group Betar. Eric Lee, an attorney representing Kiswani in the case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the lawsuit, which was filed in federal court last month, Kiswani accused the group of stalking and harassment, including social media “bounties”.

“For years, Betar USA stalked & harassed me even offering $1,800 for someone to hand me a beeper while I was pregnant,” Kiswani wrote on X at the time.

The group recently ceased its New York operations as part of a settlement with Letitia James, the attorney general whose office investigated the group and found that it had engaged in “bias-motivated assaults, threats and harassment targeting Muslim, Arab, Palestinian and Jewish New Yorkers”.

In a social media post commenting on the foiled plot, Betar wrote, “violent terrorist Nerdeen Kiswani wants to globalize the intifada not surprising if other terrorists targeted her”.

Randy Fine, a Republican representative of Florida whom Kiswani also referenced in her post, has made repeated Islamophobic remarks, and has previously singled out Kiswani.

Kiswani, who was born in Jordan and has been living in the US since she was a young child, is the founder of Within Our Lifetime, a pro-Palestine group that has been behind many New York protests against Israel’s war on Gaza.

The group – and Kiswani herself – have been condemned by some for their rhetoric, including their stated support for armed resistance, the claim that Palestine must be liberated “by any means necessary”, and statements calling for Zionists to be banned from public life.

Pro-Israel groups, including Betar, have frequently called her a “terrorist” or “terror supporter”. She has also at times had heated disagreements with fellow pro-Palestine activists and has repeatedly criticized Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s mayor, for positions she views as compromising to the Palestinian cause.

But Kiswani has repeatedly denied allegations of antisemitism, arguing that the group’s focus is the state of Israel, not Jews.

“This is horrifying but not surprising in a political climate where our own president constantly sows division and pushes extremist rhetoric,” said Antonio Reynoso, the Brooklyn borough president, of the foiled plot.

“Political violence has no place in New York,” he added.

The report drew many messages of support for Kiswani and condemnation of the violence. Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia student who became a symbol of Palestinian activism in New York following his three-month detention by ICE, wrote that he was “disturbed and outraged” by the news.

“Another attempt to intimidate and silence Palestinians speaking out against Israel’s genocide and for Palestinian freedom.”