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CBS News
39 minutes ago
- General
- CBS News
What is "Run for their Lives" -- the organization in Boulder, Colorado during Sunday's attack?
Sunday's attack in Colorado that injured at least six people on Boulder's Pearl Street Mall is still under investigation and the FBI described the incident as a "targeted terror attack." An organizer with Run for Their Lives, the group that was targeted, called it antisemitic. Run for Their Lives is a national organization with chapters in 35 states that hosts weekly runs and walking events aimed at bringing attention to the Israeli hostages taken in Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack. In Colorado, the group has chapters in Boulder and Denver. "We are a local chapter of the global initiative Run For Their Lives," the group wrote on Facebook. "We do an 18 minute weekly walk to show international solidarity with the hostages taken from Israel during the 10/7 massacre, and still being held in Gaza. We will walk until they are all released." Rachel Amaru, an organizer with Run for Their Lives' Boulder chapter, called the attack "blatantly antisemitic." Two sources said a witness told investigators that the suspect -- later identified by the FBI as 45-year-old Mohamed Soliman -- allegedly yelled "End Zionist!" and Mark Michalek, FBI Special Agent in Charge of the Denver Field Office, said the suspect yelled "Free Palestine" during the attack. Mark Michalek, FBI Special Agent in Charge of the Denver Field Office, provides updates on what he described as a terrorist attack in Boulder, Colorado on Sunday, June 1, 2025. CBS Amaru said the group is out on the Pearl Street Mall every week and the worst thing that's happened in the months since they've started was someone trying to grab an Israeli flag from a participant. The organization was started by several Israelis in California's Bay Area, according to the group's website, to call for "the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas." "Innocent children, women, the elderly, and young people should not be living in tunnels 20 meters underground for over a year-they should be in their homes with their families," the group wrote. "Until this crisis is resolved, the world risks normalizing this unbearable situation. Our focus is not on the 'how' (pressure world leaders or military pressure). We are solely focused on the 'what': doing everything possible to bring them home!" Ed Victor, who was participating in the walk, said they've been holding the silent marches every week since Oct. 7, 2023. They stop at the courthouse to sing songs, tell stories, and read the names of the hostages each week. Victor said about 30 people were participating in Sunday's walk. "We've been marching since Oct. 7, it's a march for the hostages, and it's just a walk. So we just wanted to raise awareness that there are Israeli hostages still in Gaza," he said. "Unfortunately, we've had to walk every week and it's now been over 600 days, but we feel like our presence just keeps the awareness that this is ongoing. Ed Victor, a participant in the Boulder chapter of Run for Their Lives, describes an attack at Boulder's Pearl Street Mall that the FBI said was targeted against members of the organization on Sunday, June 1, 2025. CBS The marchers occasionally encounter hecklers, but they try not to respond. Other people nod, clap, or thank the participants as they walk by, Victor said. He never expected that someone would attack them. "There was somebody there that I didn't even notice, although he was making a lot of noise, but I'm just focused on my job of being quiet and getting lined up. And, from my point of view, all of a sudden, I felt the heat. It was a Molotov cocktail equivalent, a gas bomb in a glass jar, thrown," Victor said. Another marcher witnessed it; "a big flame as high as a tree," Victor continued, "and all I saw was someone on fire." The downtown Boulder County Government Building is shown following an incident that the FBI is investigating as an act of terror on June 1, 2025 in Boulder, Colorado. A suspect is in custody after reportedly throwing an incendiary device at a group participating in an organized walk near the courthouse to show solidarity with hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. Chet Strange / Getty Images A joint statement from Boulder's Jewish community denounced the attack and urged the community to come together in its wake. "We are saddened and heartbroken to learn that an incendiary device was thrown at walkers at the Run for Their Lives walk on Pearl Street as they were raising awareness for the hostages still held in Gaza," the group of organizations wrote. "When events like this enter our own community, we are shaken. Our hope is that we come together for one another."
CTV News
39 minutes ago
- General
- CTV News
6 injured, possibly with burns, in a Colorado attack the FBI is investigating as terrorism
BOULDER, Colo. — Six people were injured Sunday in what the FBI immediately described as a 'targeted terror attack' at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado, where a group had gathered to raise attention to Israeli hostages held in Gaza. The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 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. No charges were immediately announced 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. 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. It occurred 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. FBI leaders in Washington said they were treating the Boulder attack as an act of terrorism, and the Justice Department -- which leads investigations into acts of violence driven by religious, racial or ethnic motivations -- 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. 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. Police in Boulder were more circumspect about a motive. Police Chief Steve Redfearn said it 'would be irresponsible for me to speculate' while witnesses were still being interviewed but noted that the group that had gathered in support of the hostages had assembled peacefully and that injuries of the victims -- ranging from serious to minor -- were consistent with them having been set on fire. The violence comes four years after a shooting rampage at a grocery store in Boulder, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Denver, that killed four people. The gunman was sentenced to life in prison for murder after a jury rejected his attempt to avoid prison time by pleading not guilty by reason of insanity. Multiple blocks of the pedestrian mall area were evacuated by police. The scene shortly after the attack was tense, as law enforcement agents with a police dog walked through the streets looking for threats and instructed the public to stay clear of the pedestrian mall. 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.'
Daily Mail
41 minutes ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Who is Mohamed Sabry Soliman? Colorado terror suspect identified after firebombing pro-Israel event
The FBI has identified the suspect who attacked a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado as Mohamed Sabry Soliman. Six people aged between 67 and 88 were injured when Solimon, 45, firebombed the demonstration, which was organized to remember the October 7 victims who are still being held hostage by Hamas militants in Gaza. Boulder Police said the horror unfolded during the event, organized by Run For Their Lives, on Pearl Street Mall in the city's downtown at around 1.26pm on Sunday, the first day of a Jewish holiday called Shavuot. Shocking videos posted online showed Soliman appearing to taunt the victims while brandishing bottles of alcohol for the Molotov cocktails in each hand as smoke rose from the scene. Wearing only jeans and sunglasses, he yelled: 'End Zionists... they are terrorists' and 'free Palestine'. He also said: 'How many children have you killed?' according to the ADL Center on Extremism.
The Independent
44 minutes ago
- General
- The Independent
AP PHOTOS: 6 injured in a Colorado attack the FBI is investigating as terrorism
Six people were injured and some may have suffered burns Sunday in what the FBI immediately described as a 'targeted terror attack' at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado, where a group had gathered to raise attention to Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
Arab News
an hour ago
- General
- Arab News
6 injured in Colorado attack the FBI is investigating as terrorism
BOULDER, Colorado: The suspect in an attack in Boulder, Colorado, that injured six yelled 'Free Palestine' and used a makeshift flamethrower, the FBI said. Mark Michalek, the special agent in charge of the Denver field office, said federal law enforcement is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism. The suspect, identified by the FBI as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, was taken into custody. No charges were immediately announced but officials said they expect to hold him 'fully accountable.' The attack took place at a popular pedestrian mall in 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. 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. Injuries ranged from serious to minor. Soliman was also injured and was taken to the hospital to be treated, but authorities didn't elaborate on the nature of his injuries. The attack occurred 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. FBI leaders in Washington said they were treating the Boulder attack as an act of terrorism, and the Justice Department — which leads investigations into acts of violence driven by religious, racial or ethnic motivations — 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. 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 percent of the population and left people almost completely reliant on international aid. Police in Boulder were more circumspect about a motive. Police Chief Steve Redfearn said it 'would be irresponsible for me to speculate' while witnesses were still being interviewed but noted that the group that had gathered in support of the hostages had assembled peacefully and that injuries of the victims — ranging from serious to minor — were consistent with them having been set on fire. The violence comes four years after a shooting rampage at a grocery store in Boulder, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northwest of Denver, that killed four people. The gunman was sentenced to life in prison for murder after a jury rejected his attempt to avoid prison time by pleading not guilty by reason of insanity. Multiple blocks of the pedestrian mall area were evacuated by police. The scene shortly after the attack was tense, as law enforcement agents with a police dog walked through the streets looking for threats and instructed the public to stay clear of the pedestrian mall. 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.'
