FBI Arrest Takes Down NYE Plot

This weekend, as many Americans woke up to celebrate the first nights of Hanukkah, we learned of a terrorist attack in Australia specifically targeting Jews who had gathered on a popular beach for a Hanukkah celebration.

And today, back in the U.S., the FBI just announced the arrest of four alleged members of a radical pro-Palestinian extremist group, accused of planning bombings across Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve. According to federal officials, the suspects were planning to use IEDs in five locations, with the goal of creating chaos, fear, and mass casualties as Americans rang in the new year.

As reported by Fox News:

Federal authorities say they disrupted a credible terrorist threat over the weekend, arresting four alleged members of a radical pro-Palestinian extremist group accused of planning coordinated New Year’s Eve bombings in Los Angeles.

The FBI told Fox News Digital that the members self-identified as part of a radical offshoot of the Turtle Island Liberation Front (TILF), an extremist group motivated by pro-Palestinian, anti-law-enforcement, and anti-government ideology.

According to the FBI, they were allegedly planning coordinated bombing attacks on New Year’s Eve using improvised explosive devices, targeting five separate locations across Los Angeles.

The agency said the four were arrested in Lucerne Valley, where they were believed to be preparing to test explosive devices ahead of the planned attacks. They have each been charged with conspiracy and possession of a destructive device.

This was not a theoretical attack. This was not online rhetoric. This was an active terror plot – and fortunately, it was stopped.

As we took to the air, many details were still coming in, and it’s imperative to allow law enforcement the space to complete their work before jumping to conclusions. But what is already clear is this: The threat of terrorism is real, organized, and growing, and it is not confined to overseas battlefields.

The FBI arrests come on the heels of a deeply disturbing weekend where numerous innocent Jewish people were gunned down by gutless radical Islamic terrorists. It wasn’t an attack on Israel. It wasn’t about Middle East policy. It was an attack on Jewish people celebrating their faith.

That distinction matters because it dismantles one of the most persistent false narratives we hear today: that rising violence is merely “anti-Israel,” not antisemitic. When Jews are attacked during a religious holiday on a beach in Australia, you no longer get to say it’s just about Israel. It’s racism. It’s hatred. And it’s supposed to be unacceptable.

As for today’s announcement from the FBI, one of the most important takeaways was the acknowledgment of a convergence of ideologies. According to the Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, this investigation was initiated in part due to a renewed effort to root out domestic extremist organizations – groups that blend far-left activism with radical Islamist ideology.

Pro-Palestinian extremism, radical left-wing movements, and Islamist terror networks have increasingly found common cause. The erosion of free speech. The intimidation of religious communities. The destabilization of a democratic society through fear and violence.

And let’s be clear about something else: The violence doesn’t end with the Jewish community.

History shows us that Jews are usually targeted first. But they are never the last. The same ideology that attacks a synagogue today will come for a church tomorrow, and for American families the day after that. 

ACLJ Senior Counsel for International and Government Affairs Jeff Ballabon joined us on the broadcast from Israel to share his reaction to the horrific events in Australia. Jeff echoed that this is not just an attack on Israel or the Israeli government. It’s hateful antisemitism, and as Americans, we must stand against it and support our Jewish neighbors:

It’s an attack on Jews, whatever we believe or don’t believe, wherever we reside or don’t reside. It is simply an attack against Jews for existing, and that has been the case for thousands of years. And whoever thought that this is left back in history, it’s not. It is always current. It’s every generation, and now we’re seeing it rising to the fore again. . . . They famously say that every civilization, every culture that goes against its Jews, collapses because they’re not going against the Jews because the Jews did something to them. They’re going against the Jews because there’s already a collapse in society, and they’re trying to find someone to blame. . . .

And the truth is we helped found [the U.S.]. We’ve been a part of this country since its inception. And there are people even now in public discourse saying, No, no, no, Jews, they’re outsiders. It’s the same story, over and over, for thousands of years. And honestly, America has to resist it because those same people are the people who are attacking Christmas markets in Europe, where there aren’t Jews to attack in some places. It’s against Judeo-Christian civilization. It’s against all of civilization. Unfortunately, Jews end up being, as they say, the canary in the coal mine. They come after us first, but only because they’re dedicated to destroying all of our civilization.

Here we are entering a season meant to be marked by celebration – Hanukkah, Christmas, and the New Year – and no American should feel fear for openly practicing their faith or gathering in public. Nor should any believer of any faith, anywhere. This weekend is a sad reminder that antisemitism is alive and well, and we all have to be vigilant and actively stand against it.

Today’s Sekulow broadcast included more analysis of the FBI’s work to stop this terror plot before it could happen, as well as more reports on the tragic attack in Australia.

Watch the full broadcast below: