CHILLING DETAILS: Self-proclaimed Hamas operative in US Air Force indicted over pipe bomb plot

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From the New York Post A self-described Hamas operative who infiltrated the US Air Force and once boasted that he’s “been a terrorist since he’s been a kid” was busted alongside two Pittsburgh women after the feds foiled an apparent terror plot involving a pair of pipe bombs, the Justice Department announced this week.

Mohamad Hamad, 23, who has dual citizenship in the US and Lebanon, was already charged for defacing a synagogue was hit Tuesday with a nine-count superseding indictment along with Talya Lubid, 24, and Micaiah Collins, 22.

“Mohamad Hamad lied about his loyalty to the United States, among other false statements, in an attempt to obtain a Top-Secret security clearance,” Acting US Attorney Rivetti said.

“During that time, he openly expressed support for Lebanon, Hezbollah, and Hamas. In addition to his previously charged role in defacing Jewish religious property, he also conspired with others named in this Superseding Indictment to manufacture and detonate destructive devices.”

The superceding indictment includes chilling details of Hamad revealing his true intentions even as he joined and embedded himself in the U.S. Air Force in June 2023, under the Biden administration.  He signed up about four months prior to the deadly Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

After enlisting in the U.S. Air Force, Pennsylvania Air National Guard (PAANG), Hamad was sent to Air Force training in Texas from Sept. 2023 through February 2024. He was then assigned to the 171st Maintenance Squadron of the PAANG, stationed in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, near the Pittsburgh International Airport.

According to the indictment, throughout the fall of 2023, Hamad communicated with associates on social media, and said multiple times that even though he had joined PAANG, his #1 loyalty was to Lebanon and Palestine.

“It’s still Palestine on top though, make no mistake,” he wrote. “People will say America, America, but let it lick my ass,” he also wrote. “Don’t get me wrong, my dear, Lebanon, Palestine are my country and they are on top, and at teh end of the day, fuck off Israel and all her friends.”

Hamad also repeatedly told his associates that he was glad for the “combat skills” he was learning in Air Force training, “in case something happens in my country [Lebonan] or Palestine.”

Just days after the massacre, on October 28, 2023 Hamad wrote, “I wish I was with teh brave hearts in Palestine right now.”  He also shared violent Hamas videos from the Hamas attack, and wrote in one conversation, “Us Muslims never surrender or back down.”

While completing applications in December 2023 to obtain a top-secret security clearance and to be considered for national security positions, Hamad confirmed that his ultimate allegiance is with the United States over other nations… all th while he was telling others that his number one loyalty was to Lebanon and Palestine.

In an online discussion around February 29, 2024 – March 1, 2024, Hamad pushed back when the person told him Hamas was a terrorist organization. “It’s not a terrorist organization, it’s a resistance,” he insisted.

On June 1, 2024, Hamad had written in a message on Telegram, “My ultimate goal in life is shaheed, everything else doesn’t matter nearly as much… I don’t see myself living long… my heart years for being with my brothers overseas.”

The indictment notes that “shaheed” is an Arabic word commonly used in Islam to mean “martyr to the Islamic faith” or “martyrdom.”

On June 6, Hamad posted an image of himself as a young boy holding a assault weapon and wrote, “Been a terrorist since I was a kid in Lebanon, real shit.”

In the summer of 2024, while DCSA was continuing his background investigation for security clearance, Hamad started manufacturing and detonating explosive devices. The indictment shares a long list of comments he made regarding his explosive device testing.

On or about July 4, 2024, Hamad messaged Collins and wrote, “I want to die fighting. I want it now so bad!”  He repeatedly said he wanted to go to Palestine to help fight.

“Alright y’all say a prayer with me. Inshallah one day each bullet in this mag kisses the foreheads of the Zionist oppressor, ameen,” he wrote on July 6, 2024.

On July 18, 2024, Hamad drove from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to State College, Pennsylvania. He had two pipe boms and another explosive device in his trunk. He and another associate reportedly detonated the devices shortly after midnight on July 19, 2024 at Rothrock State Park.

Days later they vandalized a Jewish Chabad of Squirrel Hill, writing in red spray paint on the building, “Jews 4 Palestine,” and also vandalized another Jewish building.

On September 10, 2024, Hamad was interviewed by a DCSA Special Agent about his security clearance application. He again swore that his allegiance was “100% to the United States,” despite being warned that false statements are a felony punishable by fines or imprisonment.

From the PennCapital-Star:

Mohamad Hamad, 23, of Coraopolis and Talya A. Lubit, 24, of Pittsburgh were originally charged in November with conspiracy and defacing a religious building.

The new charges, made public in an indictment filed Tuesday, include a third defendant, Micaiah Collins, 22, of Pittsburgh, who is accused of conspiring with Hamad to make and set off homemade explosives.

Access the full indictment below:

Self-proclaimed Hamas operative in US Air Force indicted over pipe bomb plot by Carly Ortiz-Lytle

 

The Justice Department shared additional details in a press release, including the following:

The nine-count Superseding Indictment named Mohamad Hamad, 23, of Coraopolis, Tayla A. Lubit, 24, of Pittsburgh, and Micaiah Collins, 22, of Pittsburgh, as defendants. Hamad and Lubit were previously indicted for their roles in defacing Jewish religious property with pro-Palestinian and anti-Zionist graffiti (read the Indictment news release here).

According to the Superseding Indictment, Hamad enlisted with the United States Air Force, Pennsylvania Air National Guard (PAANG) in 2023. Hamad was assigned to the 171st Maintenance Squadron of the PAANG, stationed in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, near the Pittsburgh International Airport. The 171st Maintenance Squadron is a part of the 171st Air Refueling Wing, the primary mission of which is to provide in-flight refueling to Department of Defense (DoD) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) aircraft.

In connection with his enlistment, Hamad sought a Top-Secret security clearance. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) investigated Hamad to determine if he should be granted that clearance. Hamad had three in-person interviews as part of his background investigation and, as alleged in the Superseding Indictment, made a series of false statements as part of that process.

The Superseding Indictment also alleges that, during this same time period, Collins conspired with Hamad to manufacture and possess a destructive device, and discussed the potential uses for the devices that they were building and testing. After Hamad and Collins detonated a device, Hamad built additional destructive devices, including two pipe bombs, and detonated those as well.

READ MORE at the New York Post.

 

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