Anti-Muslim Hate Surfaces Nationwide as Israel-Hamas War Continues

Jewish and Muslim communities worldwide have been rocked by the impact of Hamas’s October 7, 2023 war on Israel, its massacre of over 1,200 people and Israel’s military response targeting Hamas and other terrorists in Gaza.  That impact has included an increased number of threats against both Jewish and Muslim communities, per the FBI and ADL. 

In the U.S., a number of post-October 7 incidents targeting Muslim, Palestinian and Arab American individuals appear to be motivated by bias -- and demonstrate how quickly hate can spread. The incidents include the October 14 murder of a young Palestinian American boy in Illinois by his landlord, who reportedly was angry about Hamas’s attack on Israel. There have also been altercations involving pro-Palestinian protesters at various rallies and events, including the vandalism of Palestinian flags or the use of anti-Palestinian language, though it is unclear whether those incidents were explicitly motivated by anti-Muslim hate. 

Below is a sampling of incidents ADL has tracked since October 7, 2023. 

Assault: 

November 25, 2023, Burlington, VT 

• Three college students of Palestinian descent, two of whom were wearing kaffiyehs at the time, were shot and seriously injured while walking near the University of Vermont campus. Jason Eaton, 48, was later arrested and charged with three counts of attempted murder. 

November 17, 2023, New York, NY 

• A Yemeni-American Muslim woman carrying a Palestinian flag was confronted by a man on the subway who allegedly called her a “terrorist,” hit her in the chest and broke the flag she was carrying. Greg Kutzin was arrested and charged with six hate crimes including assault. 

November 7, 2023, Brooklyn, NY 

• Hadasa Bozakkaravani, 48, allegedly threw a cup of hot coffee toward a man wearing a kaffiyeh who was with his 18-month-old son at a Fort Greene playground, and accused the man of being a “terrorist.” Bozakkaravani faces nine counts in connection to the incident, including four hate crime charges.  

October 27, 2023, Millcreek, UT 

• Robert Wolcott, 61, was arrested after an incident at a train station in which he allegedly told a Muslim woman and her son to "go back to your country, terrorist," and spit on them. 

October 24, 2023, Wilton Manors, FL 

• Kenneth Pinkney, 47, was arrested after he allegedly harassed and assaulted a Muslim US Postal Service worker. Pinkney allegedly made a shooting gesture at her with his hand, called her derogatory names and told her to “go back to her country,” then ripped off her hijab and hit her in the face. 

October 18, 2023, New York, NY 

• While riding on the subway, a man allegedly told a 16-year-old Muslim girl “you’re a terrorist, you don’t belong here” and ripped off her hijab. 

October 14, 2023, Plainfield, IL 

• Palestinian American Hanaan Shahin, 32, and her son, Wadea Al-Fayoume, 6, were stabbed by their landlord in their home in an attack that authorities believe was motivated by anti-Muslim hatred and the Israel-Hamas war. Wadea was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital, while his mother was admitted in serious condition. Suspect Joseph Czuba, 71, faces first-degree murder, hate crime and other charges. 

October 12, 2023, Columbus, OH 

• During a pro-Palestinian demonstration, the driver of a passing car allegedly shouted obscenities about Palestinians and appeared to intentionally hit one of the demonstrators with his vehicle. The demonstrator’s condition was not known, though medics were not called to the scene, according to The Columbus Dispatch. 

October 11, 2023, Brooklyn, NY 

• Two groups got into a verbal altercation in Brooklyn’s Bay Ridge neighborhood after a group of individuals in cars allegedly shouted pro-Israel comments at a group of three pedestrians, who responded by saying, “Free Palestine.” The passengers reportedly got out of their car and physically attacked one of the pedestrians, who was of Arab or Palestinian descent, according to law enforcement.  

• A suspect assaulted a pedestrian carrying a Palestinian flag, tearing up the flag and striking the victim with the flagpole.  

Harassment: 

December 1, 2023, Burtonsville, MD 

• The Idara-e-Jaferia Islamic Center was evacuated after a reported bomb threat. Local law enforcement subsequently determined that the threat was “not valid.” 

November 20, 2023, Fort Lauderdale, FL 

• A Muslim woman wearing a hijab was allegedly verbally harassed by a man who made anti-Muslim statements and called her a terrorist while waiting for a flight inside Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. 

November 7, 2023, New York, NY 

• Stuart Seldowitz, 64, a former federal government employee, was arrested and charged with multiple hate crime counts after he was filmed allegedly harassing a halal food cart vendor by accusing him of supporting Hamas, mocking Islam and commenting “if we killed 4,000 Palestinian kids…it wasn’t enough.” 

November 7, 2023, Sylvania, OH 

• An unknown individual allegedly placed a decapitated baby doll in the front yard of a house that was displaying a Palestinian flag. 

October 25, 2023, Washington, DC 

• A Palestinian staff member found a note reading “GO BACK WHERE YOU CAME FROM” and “DEATH TO ALL PALESTINIANS!” in their office at American University. 

October 19, 2023, Lombard, IL 

• A man allegedly accosted two Muslim men at an apartment complex, telling them they didn’t “belong in this country” and threatening to shoot them. The accused perpetrator has been arrested and charged with two counts of felony hate crime. 

October 17, 2023, Burlingame, CA 

• Someone harassed a visibly Muslim woman walking down the street, spitting on her and telling her to “go back to where she came from.” 

October 16, 2023, Beaverton, OR 

• The Islamic Society of Greater Portland reported multiple “threats directed at [its] community members.” Law enforcement is investigating and has increased patrols near the mosque.  

October 13, 2023, Harrisburg, PA 

• An individual driving past a pro-Palestinian protest allegedly yelled racial slurs and threated protesters with a gun. Richard Blandy, 56, was arrested and charged with multiple counts, including ethnic intimidation, terroristic threats and simple assault by physical menace. 

October 13, 2023, New York, NY

• An individual walked into Ayat, a Palestinian restaurant in Manhattan, and allegedly verbally harassed the owner and employees by accusing them of being terrorists. The restaurant also reported receiving threatening voicemails and a barrage of negative online reviews since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas. 

October 12, 2023, San Diego, CA 

• Two individuals pasted fliers of Israeli civilians kidnapped by Hamas around the property of the Islamic Center of San Diego and allegedly tied rags “resembling Israel’s flag” to a fence outside the mosque. 

October 11, 2023, Dearborn, MI 

• Carl Mintz, a Farmington Hills resident, was arrested after he allegedly made an online threat against Palestinian Americans in nearby Dearborn. The suspect was charged with one count of felony threat of terrorism and a misdemeanor count of malicious use of a telecom device. 

October 9, 2023, New Haven, CT 

• An unknown individual wrote the message “Death to Palestine” on a whiteboard outside of a residential suite in a student dormitory at Yale University. There were also messages written in Hebrew which translated to “death to Palestine” and “children of whores.” 

Vandalism: 

November 2, 2023, Phoenixville, PA 

• An unknown individual was captured on surveillance video vandalizing the Khair Community Center, a local mosque, by writing the word “terrorist” on the door. 

November 1, 2023, Petaluma, CA 

• Someone vandalized a Palestinian-and-Mexican-owned cafe with hateful messages. 

October 19, 2023, Philadelphia, PA 

• Someone vandalized the United Muslim Islamic Center in South Philadelphia with graffiti on the glass doors and windows.  

October 16, 2023, Brownsville, TX 

• Genovevo Izaguirre, pastor of the local Mision Divina church, was charged with five counts of graffiti after he allegedly spray-painted the message “No Islam” on the walls of multiple businesses in downtown Brownsville. 

October 10, 2023, Boston, MA 

• The Boston Islamic Seminary’s Palestinian Cultural Center for Peace was vandalized with graffiti that read “Nazis.”