An Afghan national identified as Mohammad Dawood Alokozay was arrested in Texas after authorities say he posted a video on TikTok claiming he was building a bomb and threatening a building in the Fort Worth area. The Department of Homeland Security and local law enforcement moved quickly once the video surfaced, and court records show he has been charged at the state level with making a terroristic threat. This disturbing episode is yet another reminder that social media can be used to broadcast real, violent intent and that our cities cannot be treated as soft targets.
Officials say Alokozay was taken into custody by the Texas Department of Public Safety with support from an FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and is being held in Tarrant County, where ICE has lodged a detainer. Local prosecutors charged him under state terror laws, underscoring that this was not merely a social-media stunt but an actionable threat that required immediate law-enforcement response. Law-abiding Texans should be comforted that sheriffs and federal partners acted to prevent potential violence, but they should not be complacent about how he got here.
Worse, DHS says Alokozay arrived in the United States under the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome after the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, and he was later admitted as a lawful permanent resident. That fact stings for every American who supported our troops abroad: we welcomed allies and sought to do right by those who helped us, but any program that resettles people without foolproof vetting risks importing threats. The timing — coming on the heels of a separate, deadly attack in Washington, D.C., allegedly involving another man admitted under the same program — raises real questions about how well these resettlement policies protect American communities.
Senior DHS officials and watchdogs have repeatedly warned about gaps in vetting and parole decisions for those brought to the U.S. in the aftermath of Afghanistan’s collapse, and critics are right to demand answers. This is not about xenophobia; it’s about commonsense national-security hygiene — thorough background checks, better intelligence sharing, and the political backbone to pause risky parole programs when they demonstrate danger to the public. The American people deserve a government that places their safety above reflexive compassion without verification.
It’s also worth noting that this arrest was carried out by state and federal partners working in coordination, showing that when law-enforcement gets the resources and cooperation it needs, threats can be disrupted before they become tragedies. But coordinated response after a threat appears is not a substitute for preventing that threat from reaching our soil in the first place. Congress and the White House must act to tighten the vetting standards, ensure ICE detainers are honored, and give local authorities the information they need to protect neighborhoods and workplaces.
Americans should praise the officers who moved to arrest this suspect and pray for the safety of every community targeted by violent ideology, but they should also demand policy change. We must stop treating national security as a political talking point and start treating it like what it is: the first duty of government. Let this arrest be a wake-up call to restore lawful, orderly immigration and to put Patriots first — our borders, our families, and our peace of mind.
