Credit: X
A man threw Molotov cocktails and set people on fire in a terror attack at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday, where demonstrators had gathered to show support for Israeli hostages.
The FBI and law enforcement are investigating after six people, aged between 67 and 88, were injured in the attack at the busy Pearl Street Mall area about 1.30pm local time (7.30pm GMT).
“We are aware of and fully investigating a targeted terror attack in Boulder, Colorado,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.
The suspect, identified as 45-year-old Egyptian national Mohamed Sabry Soliman, was arrested at the scene, with police officers seen pinning him to the ground as they apprehended him. He was later taken to hospital.
Demonstrators with the volunteer group Run For Their Lives, consisting of Jewish community members, had gathered in the mall to call for the release of Israeli hostages who remain in Gaza.
Boulder Police Chief Steve Redfearn said police were investigating whether the demonstrators were targeted. It was unclear whether they were among the victims injured.
“There was a group of pro-Israel people that were there in a peaceful demonstration, I wouldn’t even call it a protest. I believe that [the demonstration] happens frequently down here,” he said.
“We are looking and actively interviewing victims and witnesses to determine whether that group was targeted or others.”
FBI special agent in charge of the Denver Field Office, Mark Michalek, said the victims were taken to hospitals, many of whom suffered from burns.
“As a result of these preliminary facts, it is clear that this is a targeted act of violence and the FBI is investigating this as an act of terrorism,” he said.
Video of the aftermath of the attack showed Mr Soliman, wearing sunglasses and holding clear spray bottles, pacing as a fire on the grass burned in front of him.
He shouted “End Zionists”, “Palestine is free” and “They are killers” towards several people as they tended to a person lying on the ground.
At one point, he was confronted by onlookers, including one who said: “He is spraying alcohol… he is making Molotov cocktails.”
Other videos showed victims lying motionless on the ground as bystanders rushed to douse them in water.
Credit: X via @MissNUndrground
Brooke Coffman, a 19-year-old student at the University of Colorado, said she saw four women lying or sitting on the ground with burns on their legs.
She said one woman appeared to have been badly burned on most of her body and had been wrapped in a flag by someone.
“Everybody [was] yelling, ‘get water, get water,’” she said.
Mr Redfearn said officers raced to the scene after receiving reports people had been set on fire.
“The initial callers indicated that there was a man with a weapon and that people were being set on fire,” he said.
“When we arrived, we encountered multiple victims that were injured with injuries consistent with burns and other injuries.”
The popular pedestrian mall is known for attracting tourists and college students.
Despite Ms Patel and Governor Jared Polis both referring to Sunday’s incident as an act of terror, Mr Redfearn refused to call the incident a terror attack.
“We are not calling it a terror attack at this point,” Mr Redfearn said.
“It is way too early. It would be irresponsible for me to speculate right now on motive and other things.”
People were told to evacuate the area due to the “active incident”.
Mr Polis said in a statement that he was “closely monitoring” the situation, adding that “hate-filled acts of any kind are unacceptable”.
“I am closely monitoring the situation in Boulder, and my thoughts go out to the people who have been injured and impacted by this heinous act of terror. Hate-filled acts of any kind are unacceptable,” he wrote on X.
“While details emerge, the state works with local and federal law enforcement to support this investigation. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
The Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish activist group, said on X that it was “aware of reports of an attack at today’s Boulder Run for Their Lives event”.
The group said the event was a “weekly meeting of Jewish community members to run/walk in support of the hostages” who were seized during Hamas’s unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, sparking the war in Gaza.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations in New York, Danny Danon, condemned the attack.
“Terrorism against Jews does not stop at the Gaza border – it is already burning the streets of America,” he said in a statement.
“Today, in Boulder, Colorado, Jewish people marched with a moral and humane demand: to return the hostages. In response, the Jewish protesters were brutally attacked, with an attacker throwing a Molotov cocktails at them,” he said.
“Make no mistake – this is not a political protest, this is terrorism.”
The attack comes a week after two Israeli embassy staff were shot dead as they left a reception for diplomats near Washington’s Jewish museum.
Elias Rodriguez, 30, was arrested after allegedly shooting Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, who were soon to be engaged.
He was charged with two counts of first degree murder. He was also charged with murder of foreign officials, causing death with a firearm, and discharging a firearm in a crime of violence.
The post Suspect threw Molotov cocktails in terror attack at rally for Israeli hostages appeared first on The Telegraph.
