Colorado Terror Suspect Blocked From Buying Gun Due To Illegal Status

The man behind last weekend’s firebomb attack on a pro-Israel demonstration in Boulder, Colorado had plotted an even deadlier act a mass shooting but was stopped only because he was in the country illegally and denied the ability to purchase a firearm. It’s a chilling reminder of what’s at stake when our immigration laws are ignored and national security is treated like a talking point instead of a priority.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, a 45-year-old Egyptian national, attempted to buy a gun as part of his year-long plan to commit mass murder at a peaceful rally. He was only stopped by the fact that his visa had expired, a small thread in a system that too often fails to protect American citizens from foreign-born threats.

• Soliman entered the U.S. in August 2022 on a B2 tourist visa.

• His visa expired in February 2023, but he remained in the country illegally, applying for asylum just months after arriving.

• After being denied a firearm, he turned to YouTube to learn how to build Molotov cocktails, then used them along with a makeshift flamethrower to attack Jewish and pro-Israel demonstrators.

Despite his failure to acquire a gun, Soliman still managed to injure over a dozen people. The FBI and federal prosecutors have rightly labeled this a hate-fueled act of terrorism, with Boulder County charging him with 16 counts of attempted murder and more than 600 years in potential prison time.

And what was his motive? Soliman told investigators he "wanted to kill all Zionist people," explicitly targeting Americans exercising their First Amendment rights. He dismissed the attack as unrelated to Jews, claiming it was only aimed at "Zionists" a distinction used by extremists to justify violence under the cover of political rhetoric.

Here’s what should scare every American:

• This wasn’t just a random act of violence. It was a planned terrorist attack.

• The only reason it wasn’t deadlier was because our immigration system worked just barely.

• Soliman should never have been in the country in the first place. He overstayed his visa and filed an asylum claim that was likely to drag on for years with no resolution, thanks to the Biden administration’s refusal to enforce immigration law.

Let’s not forget: the Left has fought tooth and nail against even the most basic enforcement measures, including mandatory visa overstay tracking, asylum reforms, and expedited removals. If the Biden White House had its way, Soliman may have been granted work authorization and allowed to remain indefinitely which he already enjoyed for a full year after his visa expired.

This is not a policy failure. It’s a failure by design.

President Trump has repeatedly warned that open borders and loose immigration policies are national security threats, not just economic and cultural concerns. Soliman’s attempted massacre is tragic proof.

If Democrats had succeeded in their repeated attempts to abolish ICE, gut asylum restrictions, or block Trump’s immigration reforms, this story could’ve ended in mass casualties.

For now, Americans were lucky but we shouldn’t have to rely on luck. We need immigration enforcement that puts American lives first, and we need leadership with the spine to say enough is enough.

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