On Sunday, a man threw Molotov cocktails and lit people on fire in a terror attack at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado, where demonstrators had congregated to show solidarity with Israeli hostages.
The FBI and law enforcement are investigating after six persons, ages 67 to 88, were hurt in an attack near the busy Pearl Street Mall at 1.30pm local time (7.30pm GMT).
“We are aware of and fully investigating a targeted terrorist attack in Boulder, Colorado,” FBI Director Kash Patel stated.
The suspect, 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, was arrested on the scene, with police officers holding him to the ground. He was later transported to the hospital.
Demonstrators from the volunteer group Run For Their Lives, which includes Jewish community members, had gathered in the mall to demand the release of Israeli hostages who remain in Gaza.
Boulder authorities Chief Steve Redfearn stated that authorities were examining if the protests were targeted. It was unknown if they were among those harmed.
“present was a group of pro-Israel individuals present, and it was a peaceful demonstration, not a protest. “I believe [the demonstration] occurs frequently down here,” he explained.
“We are looking and actively interviewing victims and witnesses to determine whether that group was targeted or others.”
Mark Michalek, the FBI special agent in charge of the Denver Field Office, stated that the victims were rushed to hospitals, with several suffering 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,” stated the attorney general.
Mr Soliman was seen pacing in the aftermath of the incident, wearing sunglasses and clutching clear spray bottles, as a grass fire burnt in front of him.
He yelled “End Zionists”, “Palestine is free”, and “They are killers” at numerous persons who were tending to a person laying on the ground.
At one point, witnesses confronted him, with one saying, “He is spraying alcohol… he is making Molotov cocktails.”
Other footage show people laying lifeless on the ground as others hurry to douse them with water.
Brooke Coffman, a 19-year-old University of Colorado student, reported seeing four ladies lying or sitting on the ground with burns on their legs.
She stated that one individual appeared to have been severely burned on the majority of her body and had been wrapped in a flag by someone.
“Everybody [was] yelling, ‘get water, get water,'” she told me.
Mr Redfearn said officers rushed to the scene after receiving allegations that persons 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,” the officer said.
“When we arrived, we encountered multiple victims that were injured with injuries consistent with burns and other injuries.”
The attractive pedestrian mall attracts both visitors and college students.
Despite the fact that Ms Patel and Governor Jared Polis both described Sunday’s tragedy as a terror attack, Mr Redfearn declined to use that term.
“We are not calling it a terror attack at this time,” Mr. Redfearn stated.