Three American citizens, two from California and one from Kansas, were arrested in the US on charges of planning to support ISIS. The Department of Justice announced that the three individuals are accused of acting together to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
The detainees were identified as 21-year-old Bisaam Ghafoor from Leawood, Kansas; 21-year-old Elias Shamsaldeen from Porterville, California; and 25-year-old Bereen Dzayee from Lakeside, California. All three face charges of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
According to the case file, the suspects allegedly transferred more than $2,000 to a person they believed to be an ISIS member. The investigation also claims that the defendants sent messages expressing intentions to harm US soldiers.
Authorities reported that Ghafoor made statements requesting the beheading of a female soldier and wrote, "I wish I could kill 300,000,000 Americans." According to the prosecution, these statements were part of the messages included in the investigation file.
The three individuals are alleged to have communicated between February 2025 and June 2026 via Discord chats, phone calls, and other messaging platforms, pledging allegiance to ISIS and its leader. The file also notes that the suspects expressed a desire to travel abroad to fight alongside ISIS.
It was also claimed that in Ghafoor’s messages, he described having his name on a drone intended for an attack on Americans as "disgusting." Prosecutors stated that his name was later found on rocket launcher ammunition intended to target US soldiers overseas.
Shamsaldeen is accused of providing financial resources to purchase drones intended for attacks on US soldiers abroad. Dzayee faces the same charge within the case file.
The investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s counterterrorism teams in Kansas City, San Diego, and Sacramento. Acting US Attorney Todd Blanche said the arrests demonstrate a commitment to dismantling terror networks and preventing further violent acts.
It is not yet clear whether the suspects have retained legal counsel. The case highlights once again how charges of supporting terrorist organizations in the US are investigated through digital communications, money transfers, and plans to travel abroad.
