Mohammad Sharifullah, the alleged ISIS terrorist involved in the 2021 bombing at Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate in Afghanistan, which killed 13 U.S. service members and at least 170 Afghan civilians, has been extradited to the U.S., President Donald Trump announced.
“Tonight, I am pleased to announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity, and he is right now on his way here to face the swift sword of American justice,” Trump said in his joint address to Congress on Tuesday.
According to reports, Pakistani authorities apprehended Sharifullah in February based on CIA intelligence that played a key role in his capture.
Following the announcement, FBI Director Kash Patel shared a photo of Sharifullah in custody. In a post on X, Patel said the extradition brings the U.S. “one step closer to justice for these American heroes and their families.”
On the ground last night at Dulles airfield as FBI personnel and our DOJ + CIA partners delivered a terrorist wanted for the Afghanistan Abbey Gate murders.
To terrorists around the world responsible for harming Americans:
We will hunt the ends of the earth and find you. pic.twitter.com/NyxjfKyOlx
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) March 5, 2025
BREAKING: As President Trump just announced, I can report that tonight the FBI, DOJ, and CIA have extradited one of the terrorists responsible for the murder of the 13 American soldiers at Abbey Gate during the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal.
One step closer to justice for…
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) March 5, 2025
According to reports, Sharifullah appeared before a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, for an initial hearing on Wednesday afternoon.
The indictment alleges that Sharifullah was in prison from 2019 until just two weeks before the Abbey Gate bombing. Following his release, he was contacted by ISIS members to assist with the attack. He reportedly conducted surveillance of a route leading to the airport, and ensured the suicide bomber’s path was clear.
A formal detention hearing is scheduled for Monday. If convicted of conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization resulting in death, Sharifullah faces a potential life sentence.
Aside from the Kabul airport bombing, Sharifullah has also been linked to two other major terror attacks. According to a U.S. Department of Justice indictment, he participated in a 2016 attack on embassy guards in Kabul and helped train gunmen responsible for a deadly assault on a Moscow nightclub last year.
