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Six people were injured on Sunday after a man shouted “Free Palestine” and attacked a crowd with inflammable devices at a pedestrian mall in downtown Boulder during a demonstration in support of Israeli hostages still held in Gaza, authorities said. The FBI is investigating the incident as a “targeted terror attack.”
The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, allegedly used a makeshift flamethrower during the attack at the Pearl Street Mall, a popular four-block area in Boulder. According to the FBI’s Denver field office, the incident occurred as people gathered to raise visibility for Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Reuters reported that FBI special agent in charge Mark Michalek said six people, aged between 67 and 88, were transported to local hospitals after the attack. “As a result of these preliminary facts, it is clear that this is a targeted act of violence and the FBI is investigating this as an act of terrorism,” Michalek said.
The FBI confirmed that Soliman was also injured and taken to the hospital. No further details about his injuries were immediately available, and no charges have yet been announced.
Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said he did not believe anyone else was involved. “We’re fairly confident we have the lone suspect in custody,” he said. “This was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in downtown Boulder on Pearl Street and this act was unacceptable. I ask that you join me in thinking about the victims, the families of those victims, and everyone involved in this tragedy,” Redfearn added during an earlier press conference.
While Redfearn declined to speculate on the motive, he noted that the group had gathered peacefully and that the victims’ injuries were consistent with them having been “set on fire.”
Brooke Coffman, a 19-year-old University of Colorado student, told Reuters she saw four women on the ground with burns on their legs. One appeared to be severely burned and was wrapped in a flag by someone at the scene. “Everybody is yelling, ‘get water, get water,’” she said, describing a shirtless man holding a glass bottle of clear liquid and shouting.
AP reported that a video from the scene captured someone yelling, “He’s right there. He’s throwing Molotov cocktails,” as a police officer approached the suspect with a gun drawn.
FBI Director Kash Patel called the incident a “targeted terror attack.” Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said the attack appeared to be a “hate crime given the group that was targeted.”
“This act of terror is being investigated as an act of ideologically motivated violence based on the early information, the evidence, and witness accounts,” FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said in a post on X.
The Justice Department also condemned the attack, calling it a “needless act of violence, which follows recent attacks against Jewish Americans.”
The Boulder incident comes shortly after a fatal shooting in Washington, DC, where two Israeli embassy workers were killed. The assailant in that case reportedly shouted, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,” as he was led away.
The violence has escalated amid ongoing protests and political polarization in the US over Israel’s military operations in Gaza, which began after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. Gaza’s Health Ministry says over 54,000 people have died in Israel’s retaliatory strikes, most of them women and children.
The FBI and local police are continuing their investigations. Law enforcement evacuated multiple blocks around the Pearl Street Mall, and officers with police dogs were seen patrolling the area after the attack.
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Link: https://indianexpress.com/article/w...ed-in-boulder-colorado-suspect-held-10042876/
The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, allegedly used a makeshift flamethrower during the attack at the Pearl Street Mall, a popular four-block area in Boulder. According to the FBI’s Denver field office, the incident occurred as people gathered to raise visibility for Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
Reuters reported that FBI special agent in charge Mark Michalek said six people, aged between 67 and 88, were transported to local hospitals after the attack. “As a result of these preliminary facts, it is clear that this is a targeted act of violence and the FBI is investigating this as an act of terrorism,” Michalek said.
The FBI confirmed that Soliman was also injured and taken to the hospital. No further details about his injuries were immediately available, and no charges have yet been announced.
Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said he did not believe anyone else was involved. “We’re fairly confident we have the lone suspect in custody,” he said. “This was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in downtown Boulder on Pearl Street and this act was unacceptable. I ask that you join me in thinking about the victims, the families of those victims, and everyone involved in this tragedy,” Redfearn added during an earlier press conference.
While Redfearn declined to speculate on the motive, he noted that the group had gathered peacefully and that the victims’ injuries were consistent with them having been “set on fire.”
Brooke Coffman, a 19-year-old University of Colorado student, told Reuters she saw four women on the ground with burns on their legs. One appeared to be severely burned and was wrapped in a flag by someone at the scene. “Everybody is yelling, ‘get water, get water,’” she said, describing a shirtless man holding a glass bottle of clear liquid and shouting.
AP reported that a video from the scene captured someone yelling, “He’s right there. He’s throwing Molotov cocktails,” as a police officer approached the suspect with a gun drawn.
FBI Director Kash Patel called the incident a “targeted terror attack.” Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said the attack appeared to be a “hate crime given the group that was targeted.”
“This act of terror is being investigated as an act of ideologically motivated violence based on the early information, the evidence, and witness accounts,” FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said in a post on X.
The Justice Department also condemned the attack, calling it a “needless act of violence, which follows recent attacks against Jewish Americans.”
The Boulder incident comes shortly after a fatal shooting in Washington, DC, where two Israeli embassy workers were killed. The assailant in that case reportedly shouted, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,” as he was led away.
The violence has escalated amid ongoing protests and political polarization in the US over Israel’s military operations in Gaza, which began after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that killed about 1,200 people and abducted around 250. Gaza’s Health Ministry says over 54,000 people have died in Israel’s retaliatory strikes, most of them women and children.
The FBI and local police are continuing their investigations. Law enforcement evacuated multiple blocks around the Pearl Street Mall, and officers with police dogs were seen patrolling the area after the attack.
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Link: https://indianexpress.com/article/w...ed-in-boulder-colorado-suspect-held-10042876/
