NYC man who wanted to join Taliban and kill US troops convicted in federal court, prosecutors say

A New York City man who tried to help the Taliban fight American forces in Afghanistan was convicted in a federal courtroom last week, officials said Monday.

He was arrested on July 26, 2019, at John F. Kennedy International Airport as he was preparing to board a flight to Thailand, the first leg of his journey to Afghanistan, the Justice Department said. He was found with mountain survival gear and thousands of dollars in cash to purchase weapons, authorities said. 

According to federal prosecutors, Hossain began expressing a desire to travel to Afghanistan to kill U.S. troops in 2018. Over a 10-month period, he recruited several others, one of whom was a government informant, and made contact with someone in Pakistan who was associated with the Taliban.