FBI: ISIS operative in United States plotted to assassinate George W. Bush

An Iraqi citizen who entered the U.S. in September 2020 allegedly plotted to kill George W. Bush, even traveling to Dallas to surveil the former president’s home, according to an FBI search warrant affidavit obtained by NBC News.

The FBI alleges that Shihab Ahmed Shihab, of Columbus, Ohio, wanted to provide material support to the Islamic State terrorist group, telling a confidential FBI source that he wanted to smuggle people into the country “to murder former President George W. Bush” because he held him responsible for killing numerous Iraqis in the 2003 invasion of the country.

In conversations with the FBI source, Shihab said he wished to murder Bush for “killing many Iraqis” and “breaking apart” Iraq. He added that he hoped to take part in the operation personally “and did not care if he died, as he would have been proud to be involved.”

The FBI says Shihab entered the U.S. legally and then applied for political asylum while also trying to marry a U.S. woman to secure his immigration status. The documents say the investigation initially began as an immigration or visa fraud case and morphed into something allegedly more sinister.

According to the filings, Shihab made claims to a confidential FBI source that he drove a transport vehicle with bombs in Iraq and had an association with ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Bahgdadi, who was killed by the U.S. in 2019.

In June, Shihab allegedly told a confidential source that he would pay at least $5,000 to smuggle four former Baath party members located in Iraq, Turkey, Egypt and Denmark into the U.S. by crossing the Mexico border. Once the men were in the country, their plan was to obtain firearms and a large van with a sliding door to carry out the assassination.

“Further, Shihab stated that he wanted to be involved in the actual attack and assassination of former President Bush and did not care if he died as he would be proud to have been involved in killing former President Bush,” the FBI affidavit says.

The suspect allegedly conducted surveillance in Dallas on the 8th February, which included a trip to Bush’s residence, and took videos of the gate in front of Bush’s neighborhood.

A spokesperson for Bush said the former president “has all the confidence in the world in the United States Secret Service and our law enforcement and intelligence communities.”