99 Illegal Aliens on Terrorist Watchlist Released Into US, Report Finds

Under the Biden-Harris administration, at least 99 illegal aliens on America’s terrorist watchlist have been released into the United States, according to a congressional report. 

“As if the record-breaking number of border encounters of illegal aliens on the terrorist watchlist is not concerning enough, the Biden-Harris administration has released some of the aliens into the interior of the United States,” says the new report from the House Judiciary Committee and its Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement. 

From the start of fiscal year 2021 through the end of fiscal 2023, the Border Patrol says, it encountered 282 illegal aliens on the terrorist watchlist between ports of entry at the southern border. Since the start of fiscal 2024 on Oct. 1, the Border Patrol has encountered an additional 93 foreign nationals on the terrorist watchlist along the border. 

Those illegal aliens came from a total of 36 countries, the report says, including nations with “an active terrorist presence such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan, Mauritania, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.” 

The terrorist watchlist includes “individuals who represent a potential threat to the United States, including known affiliates of watchlisted individuals,” according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, parent agency of the Border Patrol and itself part of the Department of Homeland Security.

Amid growing conflict in the Middle East following Hamas’ terrorist attacks Oct. 7 in Israel, several recent encounters at the border raised security concerns. 

In July, for example, Border Patrol agents arrested three Palestinian illegal immigrants after the discovery of their possible ties to terrorist organizations. 

In June, the Department of Homeland Security identified over 400 illegal aliens as a “concern” because they were brought to the U.S. through an ISIS-affiliated human smuggling network. Although over 150 of them reportedly have been arrested, the location of the others is unknown. 

Also in June, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested eight illegal aliens from Tajikistan after it was discovered that they had possible ties to ISIS, a terrorist group. The eight originally had been released into the U.S. because initial vetting at the border didn’t produce any security concerns. 

The release of illegal aliens with ties to ISIS highlights a theme of the House Judiciary Committee’s report—a lack of vetting and proper information led to the release of illegal immigrants on the terrorist watchlist. 

“Instead of being vetted against databases in their home countries, illegal aliens are only screened against U.S. criminal databases and against Interpol,” according to the report, referring to the International Criminal Police Organization.

In other words, if an illegal alien has committed crimes in his or her home country but not in the U.S., that border crosser is unlikely to be flagged as a threat. 

The report details issues related to the lack of information sharing with immigration judges. For example, in February, authorities arrested Afghan national Mohammad Kharwin, who is on the terrorist watchlist, after he spent almost a year free in the U.S.

But in March 2024, an immigration judge released Kharwin because the judge wasn’t told that the man was a security threat and part of a radical group designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization. Kharwin was rearrested when media reports brought the case to light.  

“The Kharwin case also illustrates how immigration judges—who hear immigration cases and can determine whether an alien should remain detained—are ill-equipped to handle national security-related cases,” the committee report concludes. 

“That lack of information,” the report says, “also may explain why immigration judges granted bond to at least 27 watchlisted aliens who were encountered between ports of entry at the southwest border between fiscal years 2021 and 2023.” 

Fortunately, as the committee report notes, DHS has begun changing some policies to grant immigration judges access to classified information regarding whether an illegal alien poses a national security threat.  

The Border Patrol also has encountered thousands of other illegal aliens since October from nations that could pose a security threat to the U.S., according to the report:  

As of June, during fiscal year 2024, Border Patrol nationwide has encountered … 2,134 Afghan nationals, 33,347 Chinese nationals, 541 Iranian nationals, 520 Syrian nationals, and 3,104 Uzbek nationals.

These encounters also include 1,260 illegal aliens from Russia; 752 from Kyrgyzstan; 734 from Pakistan; 704 from Somalia; 433 from Kazakhstan; 123 from Yemen; and 62 from Lebanon.

“The Biden-Harris administration continues to prioritize illegal aliens—including hundreds on the terrorist watchlist and many more terrorist-sympathizing counties—over the safety and security of the American people,” the report concludes.