False alarm
The week's news at a glance.
Washington, D.C.
The FBI concluded that a tip that five Middle Eastern men had infiltrated the United States on Christmas Eve was a hoax, ABC News reported this week. Sources told ABC that an informant, Michael Hamdani, fabricated the story after he was arrested in Canada last October and charged with dealing in forged passports. He faces similar charges in the U.S., and allegedly hoped to avoid jail by squealing. American authorities launched a national search for the five suspects, identified as Abid Noraiz Ali, 25; Mustafa Khan Owasi, 33; Iftikhar Khozmai Ali, 21; Adil Pervez, 19; and Akbar Jamal, 28. The FBI posted mug shots on the Internet. A jeweler in Pakistan said he was the man in one of the photos, although he had never traveled to North America.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The state of Britain's Armed Forces
The Explainer Geopolitical unrest and the unreliability of the Trump administration have led to a frantic re-evaluation of the UK's military capabilities
By The Week UK
-
Anti-anxiety drug has a not-too-surprising effect on fish
Under the radar The fish act bolder and riskier
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
Crossword: April 21, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff