Minneapolis, MN – A 23-year-old man who twice tried to travel overseas to join ISIS and openly called for jihad has pleaded guilty in federal court to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, officials announced Thursday.
Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan admitted before U.S. District Judge Donovan W. Frank that he sought to join ISIS fighters in Somalia and actively promoted the group online. Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson said Hassan “flew the ISIS flag, venerated attacks on the homeland, and wanted to kill Americans,” adding that Minnesota would not be allowed to become a “safe haven for terrorists.”
ISIS Agent
According to court documents, Hassan operated social media accounts where he praised terrorist attacks, shared ISIS propaganda, and called for the creation of an Islamic caliphate in Somalia. Posts included images of the black ISIS flag, propaganda videos, and messages glorifying violence, including praise for the New Year’s Day massacre in New Orleans that killed 14 people.
In December 2024, Hassan twice attempted one-way travel from Minnesota to Somalia via Ethiopia to join ISIS. Surveillance by FBI agents revealed that on his first attempt he was blocked from boarding due to improper travel documents. He then obtained additional paperwork and tried again. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted him in Chicago, finding his birth certificate, naturalization papers, and high school diploma packed in his single carry-on bag.
A forensic review of Hassan’s two phones uncovered communications with an alleged ISIS recruiter, exchanges with an ISIS media outlet, and instructional documents on explosives and sniper training. Agents also located a series of internet searches on weapons, fertilizer, and ISIS operations.
In February, Hassan posted videos from his car displaying a knife and waving a homemade ISIS flag. When arrested later that month, FBI agents seized the flag, two phones, and the knife. Hassan later confessed to agents that he supported ISIS, routinely posted its propaganda, and sought to fight for the group abroad.
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FBI Minneapolis Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. said the plea was the result of extensive investigative work, stressing that ISIS and Al Shabab “represent a clear threat to all Americans.”
Hassan remains in custody pending sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled.
The man who called ISIS his “commander” now faces judgment in a U.S. courtroom.