Ballot questions ask if Vermont should stand up for the Palestinian people
On Town Meeting Day, voters in several Vermont cities and towns were asked if they should become "apartheid-free communities," but opponents warn the measures could cause harm to Jewish neighbors.
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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Self-proclaimed 'Jew hater' pleads guilty after targeting victims at NYC protests
A New York man charged with federal hate crimes after repeatedly assaulting Jewish counter-protesters at anti-Israel protests in New York City between 2024 and 2025, pleaded guilty to one count as part of an agreement during a court hearing Wednesday. Tarek Bazrouk, 20, appeared Wednesday afternoon for a status hearing in federal court, where he was facing three counts of committing hate crimes for allegedly targeting and assaulting Jewish people at three NYC protests related to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. A grand jury indicted him last month. During the status hearing, Bazrouk pleaded guilty to one count as part of an agreement in which a superseding information document was presented. In essence, the document replaces a previously filed indictment in a criminal case. A bearded Bazrouk appeared in court wearing a tan jumpsuit and black eyeglasses and shuffled through papers while waiting for the hearing to get underway. Rise In Antisemitic Extremism Fuels Wave Of Terror Plots In The United States Since 2020 Judge Richard M. Berman presided over the hearing and began by saying he was informed Bazrouk was planning to plead guilty. After going through some documents and verifying with Bazrouk that was the route he wanted to take, Berman asked him if he wished to plead guilty. Read On The Fox News App "I wish to plead guilty," Bazrouk said. Bazrouk then read a statement saying, between April 2024 and January 2025, he assaulted others because of their identity. He further admitted to punching someone Jan. 6. "I am very sorry," Bazrouk said. Boulder Terror Attack Latest In Antisemitic Incidents Rising Across Us In 2025 He continued, explaining he is Palestinian and started to protest as a way to express outrage over Israel's actions in Gaza. Bazrouk apologized to his family and community before the judge asked if he was pleading to the superseding information. "Yes, your honor," Bazrouk said. The plea was then accepted, and he was found guilty. Sentencing is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 1. Boulder, Colorado Suspected Terror Attack Suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman Faces Murder, Assault, Other Charges Bazrouk was arrested for three instances of assaulting Jewish people but "remained undeterred and quickly returned to using violence to target Jews in New York City," according to U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton of the Southern District of New York. The first instance took place April 15, 2024, when Bazrouk, who the DOJ said was wearing a green headband "typically worn by Hamas terrorists," allegedly attended a protest outside the New York Stock Exchange in lower Manhattan. Virginia Man Charged With Planning 'Mass Casualty' Attack At Nyc Israeli Consulate He was arrested by the NYPD for lunging at a group of pro-Israel protesters, the DOJ said, and kicked a Jewish college student in the stomach while being taken to a patrol vehicle. The person he kicked was standing near Jewish protesters wearing kippahs, waving Israeli flags and singing Jewish songs. Bazrouk allegedly assaulted another Jewish student Dec. 9, 2024, during a protest near a university in upper Manhattan, the DOJ said. The second victim was with his brother – both were wearing kippahs – and had an Israeli flag draped across his shoulders while singing Jewish songs. Bazrouk was accused of stealing their flag and running off. The victim and his brother chased him through the crowd to retrieve it, and after they got it back, Bazrouk allegedly sneaked up beside the second victim and punched him in the face. At the beginning of this year, on Jan. 6, Bazrouk allegedly committed his third assault on a Jewish person at a protest in Manhattan. The third victim had an Israeli flag draped around his shoulders and was wearing a hat with the flag and a chain with the Star of David. Bazrouk was wearing a keffiyeh on his face when he allegedly "made contact" with the third victim's shoulder and wrapped his foot around his ankle. When the victim attempted to push him away, Bazrouk allegedly cursed at him and punched him in the nose. Law enforcement obtained warrants to search a cellphone allegedly used by Bazrouk, which revealed an "antisemitic bias" and "support for anti-Jewish terrorist groups, including Hamas," the DOJ said, citing court documents. Bazrouk allegedly identified himself as a "Jew hater" in text messages, called Jewish people "worthless" and said "Allah" wanted "us [to] rid of [Jews]," among other vulgar statements, according to the documents. The documents added he told a friend he was "mad happy" when he found out family members overseas were part of Hamas. The DOJ described his phone as "littered with pro-Hamas and pro-Hizballah (sic) propaganda." Fox News Digital's Kirill Clark and Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this article source: Self-proclaimed 'Jew hater' pleads guilty after targeting victims at NYC protests
New York Post
5 hours ago
- New York Post
‘Jew hater' Columbia protester pleads guilty to 3 antisemitic hate crime assaults yet issues apology to Palestinian community
The self-described 'Jew hater' Columbia agitator who has alleged ties to a Hamas cell pleaded guilty to a string of hate crimes targeting Jewish people, yet only asked for forgiveness from the Palestinian community. Tarek Bazrouk, 20, admitted to violently assaulting three Jewish people between April 2024 and January 2025 at several Manhattan protests of the war in Gaza, but used his chance to speak in Manhattan federal court to apologize not to Jews, but to the Palestinian community. 'I am sorry. I am Palestinian and I participated in the protest to display my outrage… I should not have used violence. I hope my family and community can forgive me,' Bazrouk said on Wednesday. 4 Tarek Bazrouk, 20, apologized to the Palestinian community in a court statement after pleading guilty to three hate crime attacks that targeted Jewish individuals. DCPI The hollow apology stands in stark contrast to the fervor Bazrouk embodied while committing the targeted attacks against Jewish people during protests at Columbia University and in downtown Manhattan. On April 15, 2024, the 20-year-old kicked a man wearing a kippa in the chest as he stood with an Israeli flag and sang a Jewish song during a demonstration near the New York Stock Exchange. Bazrouk assaulted two other individuals during that same demonstration, according to prosecutors. Several days later, Bazrouk said he would 'boom boom boom' the next Jewish person he saw, text messages revealed. He then punched another kippa-wearing man in the face while the victim carried an Israeli flag during a protest on December 9, 2024, prosecutors said. 4 Bazrouk had violent confrontations at several protests in 2024 and 2025. Instagram/jewhatedb The confessed antisemite punched yet another Israeli flag-bearer in the face at a protest earlier this year on January 6, according to court testimony. Following his May arrest for the assaults, federal officials discovered more insidious evidence after searching Bazrouk's Manhattan home, where he lived with his parents and several other family members. Investigators seized four knives, a replica firearm, brass knuckles, $750,000 in cash in a safe, and Bazrouk's cell phone, which revealed chilling text messages. Bazrouk was 'a member of a chat group that received regular updates from Abu Obeda,' which is linked to Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades militant group, The Post revealed earlier this month. 4 Bazrouk draped in the Palestinian flag at a protest in 2024. U.S. DOJ In text messages, the 20-year-old described himself as a 'Jew hater,' called Jewish people 'worthless,' and exhorted a friend to 'slap that bitch' in reference to a woman who had an Israel flag sticker on her laptop, court documents revealed. The 'Jew hater' further claimed to a friend that he was proud some of his family members were fighting with Hamas overseas, text messages showed. Lawyers for Bazrouk rejected any connection between their client and the terror organization. The $750,000 in cash was seized by the government, with Bazrouk agreeing to its forfeiture. 4 Police found several weapons, including four knives and brass knuckles, as well as $750,000 cash, after executing a warrant on Bazrouk's Manhattan home. U.S. DOJ Judge Richard Berman advised the hateful brute that he faces a maximum sentence of five years behind bars, two years supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Berman added that Bazrouk could also be forced to pay restitution to his victims. Bazrouk will have a sentencing hearing on October 1. He still has two pending cases in state court for the incidents in December and January.
San Francisco Chronicle
6 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Families file suit challenging Arkansas law that requires Ten Commandments be posted in classrooms
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Seven Arkansas families filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging an upcoming state requirement that public school classrooms have posted copies of the Ten Commandments, saying the new law will violate their constitutional rights. The federal lawsuit challenges a measure Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed into law earlier this year, similar to a requirement enacted by Louisiana and one that Texas' governor has said he'll sign. The Arkansas law takes effect in August and requires the Ten Commandments to be prominently displayed in public school classrooms and libraries. 'Permanently posting the Ten Commandments in every classroom and library — rendering them unavoidable — unconstitutionally pressures students into religious observance, veneration, and adoption of the state's favored religious scripture,' the lawsuit said. The suit was filed on behalf of the families by the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation. The lawsuit names four school districts in northwest Arkansas — Fayetteville, Bentonville, Siloam Springs and Springdale — as defendants. A spokesperson for Fayetteville schools said the district would not comment on pending litigation, while the other three districts did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Attorney General Tim Griffin said his office was reviewing the lawsuit and considering options. Attorneys for the families, who are Jewish, Unitarian Universalist or nonreligious, said they planned to ask the federal judge in Fayetteville for a preliminary injunction blocking the law's enforcement. The attorneys say the law violates longstanding Supreme Court precedent and the families' First Amendment rights. 'By imposing a Christian-centric translation of the Ten Commandments on our children for nearly every hour of every day of their public-school education, this law will infringe on our rights as parents and create an unwelcoming and religiously coercive school environment for our children," Samantha Stinson, one of the plaintiffs, said in a news release. Louisiana was the first state to enact such a requirement, and a federal judge blocked the measure before it was to take effect Jan 1. Proponents of Louisiana's law say that ruling only applies to the five school boards listed in the suit, but The Associated Press is unaware of any posters being displayed in schools as the litigation continues.
