By Al-Fassel | 2025-03-08

Governments across the globe have been thwarting terrorist plots cooked up by the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS), demonstrating that the group's operatives will be caught and held accountable for their actions.

A 20-year-old suspect is currently facing terrorism charges in the United States for plotting a mass shooting in New York City, after Canada agreed to extradite him, the New York Post reported in February.

After he entered Canada on a student visa in May 2023, the Pakistani suspect drew law enforcement scrutiny after expressing sympathies for ISIS on social media.

Investigators monitoring encrypted communications uncovered plans for what the suspect called "a real offline cell" of ISIS supporters, intended to execute "the largest attack on US soil since 9/11," the criminal complaint said.

He is accused of plotting a mass casualty attack "in the name of ISIS," according to US Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Canadian authorities arrested him 12 miles from the US border on September 4. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

The case exemplifies how enhanced surveillance and cross-border cooperation are enabling authorities to stop ISIS plots before they materialize.

International security efforts

A regional court in Germany meanwhile convicted two men who had planned to attack the Swedish parliament, saying they "shared the ISIS worldview and endorsed (its) violent approach," AFP reported February 27.

The men had planned to "kill members of parliament and anyone who tried to stop the attack with firearms," the higher regional court in Thuringia said.

One defendant received a 5.6-year sentence for ISIS membership after confessing at trial, while the other was sentenced to 4.2 years for supporting a terrorist organization.

In Ecuador, authorities arrested a suspected ISIS operative planning to target embassies after a joint investigation with Spanish police sparked by the suspect's social media posts, AFP reported February 26.

The successful operations coincide with expanded efforts to strangle ISIS financing.

During the 21st meeting of the Counter ISIS Finance Group (CIFG), participants shared strategies for disrupting terrorist funding networks across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, the US Treasury said February 28.

The meeting highlighted terrorists' exploitation of virtual asset providers in countries with weak controls and encrypted messaging platforms for recruitment and fundraising, the Treasury said.

"The fight against ISIS financing is not just a fight against terrorism; it is a fight for the safety, stability and prosperity of nations," the CIFG co-leads said.

"Without crucial financial resources, ISIS cannot sustain its campaigns of violence."