Several people were injured and some were set on a fire in a “terror attack” at an outdoor mall in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday.
The FBI and law enforcement are investigating after a man attacked people with Molotov cocktails at the busy Pearl Street Mall area about 1.30pm local time (7.30pm GMT), where Jewish demonstrators were calling for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza.
The suspect, who has not been named, was taken to the hospital after being detained, officials said.
“We are aware of and fully investigating a targeted terror attack in Boulder, Colorado,” FBI Director Kash Patel said.
Footage posted on social media showed a shirtless man, wearing sunglasses and holding clear spray bottles, pacing as a fire on the grass burned in front of him.
He can be heard screaming “End Zionists”, “Palestine is Free” and “They are Killers” towards several people as they tend 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.”
People at the scene in the Pearl Street Mall area – X
Other videos showed several people lying motionless on the ground as bystanders rushed to douse them in water.
Boulder Police Chief, Steve 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.
Demonstrators with the volunteer group Run For Their Lives, consisting of Jewish community members, had gathered to call for the release of Israeli hostages who remain in Gaza.
Mr Redfearn said police were investigating whether the demonstrators were targeted.
“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.”
Police have cordoned off the area – Shutterstock Editorial
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.
Law enforcement officials in protective gear investigate after the attack – AP
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.
