A man shouting “Free Palestine” threw an incendiary device Sunday into a crowd of people on a pedestrian mall in Boulder, Colorado, burning at least six people who were walking to raise awareness for the plight of the Israeli hostages in Gaza. The F.B.I. says it’s investigating the incident as a terror attack.
One bureau official called it a “targeted terror attack,” although the Boulder police chief was initially reluctant to call it terrorism.
Police arrested a subject identified as Mohamed Sobry Soliman, 45, an Egyptian national. Authorities did not share details about Soliman, who was reportedly injured in the attack.
The White House called Soliman an “illegal alien.” White House Advisor Stephen Miller stated, “He was granted a tourist visa by the Biden Administration, and then he illegally overstayed that visa. In response, the Biden Administration gave him a work permit.”
The six victims were part of a weekly walking group called Run for Their Lives and ranged in age from 67 to 88, according to The Associated Press. Their wounds ranged from minor to serious.
CBS News reported that the walking group said in a statement, “This is not a protest; it is a peaceful walk to show solidarity with the hostages and their families, and a plea for their release.”
The attack comes just two weeks after another man acting in the name of Palestinians reportedly admitted to the shooting deaths of two young staffers from the Israeli Embassy in Washington outside a Jewish museum.
Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who is Jewish, observed that the attack occurred on the eve of the Shavuot holiday.
“As the Jewish community reels from the recent antisemitic murders in Washington, DC, it is unfathomable that the community is facing another antisemitic attack here in Boulder, on the eve of the holiday of Shavuot,” he observed.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser issued a statement saying, “This attack appears to be a hate crime given the group that was targeted,” noting that the people gathered to support the hostages were Jewish.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar posted on X, “Shocked by the terrible antisemitic terror attack targeting Jews in Boulder, Colorado.”
Sa’ar continued, “This is pure Antisemitism, fueled by the blood libels spread in the media. I spoke with our Ambassador in the US and our Consul General in LA. I pray for those who were wounded in the attack.”
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Colorado announced it is “outraged and heartbroken” over the attack.
The head of the group, Brandon Rattiner, added, “Our community has consistently warned that hateful and reductive rhetoric about Israel and Jews puts us in danger. We’re not being alarmist – we’re just paying attention. Violence against Jews is immoral and must end.”
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