Six people suffered burn injuries in Unites States' Colorado on Sunday after an attacker used a 'makeshift flamethrower' targetting a group gathered to raise attention to Israeli hostages held in Gaza while yelling "Free Palestine".
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has described as a "targeted terror attack" that took place at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado.
The suspect has reportedly been identified as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, who has been taken into custody. , yelled "Free Palestine" and used a makeshift flamethrower in the attack, said Mark Michalek, the special agent in charge of the Denver field office. Soliman was taken into custody.
This incident takes place more than a week after the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington by a Chicago man who yelled "I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza" as he was being led away by police.
What Happened In Colorado?
The attack took place at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall, a four-block area in downtown Boulder, where demonstrators with a volunteer group called Run For Their Lives had gathered to raise visibility for the hostages who remain in Gaza as a war between Israel and Hamas continues to inflame global tensions and has contributed to a spike in antisemitic violence in the United States.
No charges were immediately announced on the suspect after taking him into custody but officials said they expect to hold him "fully accountable."
Soliman was also injured and was taken to the hospital to be treated, but authorities didn't elaborate on the nature of his injuries.
Video from the scene showed a witness shouting, "He's right there. He's throwing Molotov cocktails," as a police officer with his gun drawn advanced on a bare-chested suspect with containers in each hand.
What Did FBI, Police Say?
FBI leaders in Washington said they were treating the Boulder attack as an act of terrorism, and the Justice Department 바카라” which leads investigations into acts of violence driven by religious, racial or ethnic motivations 바카라” decried the attack as a "needless act of violence, which follows recent attacks against Jewish Americans."
"This act of terror is being investigated as an act of ideologically motivated violence based on the early information, the evidence, and witness accounts. We will speak clearly on these incidents when the facts warrant it," FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said in a post on X.
Police Chief Steve Redfearn in Boulder, said it "would be irresponsible for me to speculate" and noted that the group that had gathered in support of the hostages had assembled peacefully and that injuries of the victims 바카라” ranging from serious to minor 바카라” were consistent with them having been set on fire.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said in a statement that he was "closely monitoring" the situation, adding that "hate-filled acts of any kind are unacceptable."
Israel's war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting about 250 others. They are still holding 58 hostages, around a third believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.
Israel's military campaign has killed over 54,000 people in Hamas-run Gaza, mostly women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were civilians or combatants. The offensive has destroyed vast areas, displaced around 90% of the population and left people almost completely reliant on international aid.
