Latest news with #TedDeutch
NDTV
21 hours ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Colorado Fire-Bomb Attack Marks Rising Violence Targeting US Jews
An attack that injured 12 people at a Colorado event in support of Israeli hostages in Gaza is intensifying fears over rising antisemitism and violence against Jews in the US. Authorities on Sunday detained Mohamed Soliman for allegedly throwing two Molotov cocktails into a pro-Israel crowd and using a flamethrower at the event in Boulder. The suspect yelled "Free Palestine" during the attack, according to law enforcement. He faces a federal hate crime charge and dozens of state charges of attempted murder and attempted use of incendiary devices. An FBI special agent involved in the case said the suspect told investigators he "wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead." It's the second instance of major antisemitic violence in the US in recent weeks. Two members of the Israeli Embassy's staff were killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, last month. The suspect in that case also yelled "Free Palestine" as he was taken into custody, according to authorities. Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza after Hamas attacked the country on Oct. 7, 2023, and killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages. The Jewish state's retaliation has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and prompted anti-Israel protests, most notably on American college campuses. While most of the demonstrations have been peaceful, some of them have included violent and antisemitic rhetoric. "The Jewish community has been warning the world that chants of 'globalize the intifada' and 'resistance by any means necessary' are calls to violence," said Ted Deutch, the chief executive officer of the American Jewish Committee. "We've now seen that violence erupt in America twice in less than two weeks." Antisemitic incidents jumped 344% in the US in 2024 from five years prior, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The 9,354 instances recorded last year marked the most on record in the 46 years the ADL has tracked anti-Jewish incidents. In April, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were forced to flee their home after a man allegedly threw Molotov cocktails into the residence. Hours earlier, Shapiro - who is Jewish - had hosted a Passover seder in the room that was set ablaze. Makeshift Flamethrower The people injured in the Colorado attack were taken to area hospitals, the Boulder Police Department said in a statement. They were part of a group, Run for Their Lives-Boulder, that has held regular demonstrations since the 2023 attack by Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the US. "Witnesses reported that the suspect used a makeshift flame thrower and threw an incendiary device into the crowd," the police department said in its statement. Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty said police recovered 16 unused Molotov cocktails that were "within arm's reach" during the attack. He said they also found an improvised flamethrower, which was a backpack device meant to apply weed killer and containing a flammable liquid. Colorado Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, said the victims "were brutally attacked while peacefully marching to draw attention to the plight of the hostages who have been held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza for 604 days." He said it was "unfathomable" that the Jewish community was facing another attack. Immigration Status The incident also provides more ammunition for the Trump administration in its drive for tougher immigration policies. It has previously targeted students and faculty on American campuses who have expressed pro-Palestinian views. Soliman, a citizen of Egypt, has been residing in the US on a visa that expired in 2023, according to government officials. President Donald Trump condemned the attack and blamed the immigration policies of former President Joe Biden for the presence of the suspect. "Yesterday's horrific attack in Boulder, Colorado, WILL NOT BE TOLERATED in the United States of America," Trump said Monday on his social-media platform. Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, wrote in an X post that "immigration security is national security." Soliman planned the attack for a year, waiting to strike until after his daughter's school graduation, according to an FBI agent investigating the attack. He told local and federal law enforcement after the attack that he researched how to make Molotov cocktails on YouTube and traveled from his home in Colorado Springs to the site of the Boulder gathering. Authorities also said Soliman told them he had tried to buy a gun but was prevented because of his immigrations status. The agent said authorities found a black plastic container with a yellow top near where the suspect was arrested. The container held unlit Molotov cocktails, made from glass wine carafes and Ball jars, with gasoline and red rags hanging out of the bottles. Soliman faces as long as decades in prison if convicted of the state charges. Additional charges could be filed in the federal case. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a series of posts on X that the attack "was aimed against peaceful people who wished to express their solidarity with the hostages held by Hamas," adding he trusted the US would prosecute the perpetrator and do all it could to prevent future similar attacks. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, the grandson of Holocaust survivors, said Sunday's attack "appears to be a hate crime given the group that was targeted."
a day ago
- General
Hatred in Boulder attack ‘is a poison': American Jewish Committee CEO
Ted Deutch is the CEO of American Jewish Committee, a global advocacy group for Jewish people.
The Herald Scotland
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Israeli Embassy staffers were shot. I'm not shocked
Police say the suspect accused of killing the couple shouted, "Free, free Palestine" after he was taken into custody. "It strongly appears that this was an attack motivated by hate against the Jewish people and the Jewish state," Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, said in a statement. "This senseless hate and violence must stop." Yes, it must stop. But this kind of hate crime targeted against Jews in our country and around the world is sadly not unusual. Opinion: Salman Rushdie canceled? Pro-Palestinian groups hamper speech for everyone else The attack on Lischinsky and Milgrim was not about a "free Palestine" or ending the war in Gaza. It was about targeting two young people because of their faith and heritage. Antisemitic violence is all too common Murder is, of course, always horrifying. But to see a young couple representing Israeli interests on American soil, on the cusp of spending their lives together, gunned down in the seat of our democracy is especially tragic. Yet, it's not shocking. Not after Hamas' terrorist attack on innocent civilians in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Not after violent antisemitic protests at many of our nation's most elite universities. Not after a prominent political leader, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, and his family were targeted by an arsonist in their home during Passover. Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store. Now, a young couple is dead - and for no apparent reason other than the fact they were Jewish. Where are Jewish people safe in America? It is terrifying that such an attack happened in our nation's capital. If Jews serving in Washington, D.C., where security should be robust, can be shot and killed in public, where are they safe? We must do better as a nation to ensure that people of all faiths, ethnicities, races and nationalities are safe. We must make clear that antisemitism has no acceptance in America. Opinion: Hamas released me. But with my partner still held hostage, I cannot be truly free. And all of us - Democrats and Republicans, conservatives and liberals, Jewish and non-Jewish - must clearly and forcefully speak out to condemn such hatred and violence. Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with USA TODAY. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Senseless hate:' Local Jewish leaders react to murders of two young Israeli diplomats
Describing it as an act of "senseless hate," former Palm Beach County congressman Ted Deutch condemned the May 21 killings of two young Israeli diplomats outside a Washington, D.C., event hosted by the organization he now leads. Now the CEO of the American Jewish Committee, Deutch confirmed that Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim were killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum as they were leaving the AJC's Young Diplomats reception. The Israeli foreign ministry said Lischinsky, 30, and Milgrim, 26, were locally employed staff members and, according to multiple published reports, the two had been involved in efforts to promote dialogue between young Israelis and Palestinians. They were a couple and had planned to become engaged to be married in late May in Jerusalem. ADL: Antisemitic acts down in Palm Beach County, Florida in 2024 but troubling trends persist 'Sarah and Yaron were stolen from us,' Deutch, who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2010 until 2022 and whose district included parts of Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Boynton Beach, said in a prepared statement. 'Moments before they were murdered, they were smiling, laughing, and enjoying an event with colleagues and friends. We are in shock and heartbroken as we attempt to process this immense tragedy.' Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith identified the suspected shooter as Elias Rodriguez, 30, from Chicago, and told reporters in Washington that Rodriguez had chanted "Free Palestine, Free Palestine," after security officers at the event took him into custody. Deutch thanked President Donald Trump and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser for their swift action and support. "While we wait for the conclusion of the police investigation — and urge all our friends and allies to do the same — it strongly appears that this was an attack motivated by hate against the Jewish people and the Jewish state, " he said. "This senseless hate and violence must stop." 'Heartbroken': 19-year-old man killed in Boynton Beach motorcycle crash was PBSO cadet The incident also drew reactions from officials in Palm Beach County. "I think as a community, we're all just absolutely heartbroken by the events that took place last night in Washington, D.C.," said Michael Hoffman, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County. "These are just two young people whose lives were senselessly taken away for no reason, other than the fact they were Jewish and that they worked for the Israeli embassy." Hoffman said there was no indication that local synagogues or Jewish centers were at a heightened risk, but noted that the federation has an office of community security that works with local and federal law-enforcement agencies to assess potential threats. "We're always trying to anticipate potential risks and threats against the Jewish community, and providing security that ensures that constituents of the Jewish community feel as though that they can attend synagogues or the Jewish community center … and feel that they are safe and secure and they can engage in a very vibrant Jewish experience," he said. The Anti-Defamation League's annual audit of antisemitic incidents tracked a total of 9,354 incidents in the U.S. in 2024, the highest total since the organization began tracking incidents 46 ago. In Florida, Palm Beach County had the highest number of reported incidents last year despite seeing a decrease from the number of cases reported in 2023. The county had 51 incidents in 2024, down from 83 the previous year, the ADL's Florida chapter reported. Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@ and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work: Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: South Florida Jewish leaders decry deaths of two Israeli diplomats
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘A reality of fear, anxiety and worry': Nicolle on the killing of two Israeli embassy staffers
Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee, the group that was hosting the event where the killings took place, joins Nicolle Wallace on Deadline White House with reaction to the horrific killing of two Israeli embassy staffers outside of the museum in Washington DC.
