Jewish man stabbed in NY amid shouts of 'Free Palestine!'
A young man stabbed a Jewish man while shouting "Free Palestine" during an assault in Brooklyn, New York early on Saturday morning. The victim is being treated and expected to recover.
Security camera footage captured the moment a group of five young Jewish men were approached by an attacker near the Chabad headquarters, resulting in one of them being stabbed.
Yaacov Behrman, public relations officer for the Chabad movement, said he knew the victim personally and issued an announcement on 𝕏.
“I can confirm that a hate crime stabbing occurred early this morning in Crown Heights, around 2 a.m., near Eastern Parkway and Kingston Avenue, close to Chabad Headquarters.”
Behrman reported that the attacker asked, “Do you want to die?” before stabbing the man. Residents in the community then chased down the assailant and managed to detain him until police arrived at the scene.
The young victim was taken to hospital, and is expected to recover “due to the location of the stabbing and the quick response of paramedics,” according to Behrman.
The Chabad official warned: “This is an extremely serious incident. The victim could have been killed. This act of hateful violence highlights the dangerous impact of anti-Semitic incitement and hate propagated by some local politicians and leaders in New York and across the United States.”
NYPD Deputy Chief Richie Taylor of the Community Affairs Bureau has vowed to enhance police patrols around the Chabad HQ during the upcoming Jewish High Holidays in October.
Chabad is a branch of Judaism established in 1775 in Russia. The name "Chabad" is an acronym for Hochma, Bina and Da'at, which translate to "wisdom," "understanding" and "knowledge."
Many followers of the movement continue to hope for the reappearance of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, who passed away in New York in 1994. As one of the largest Jewish movements, Chabad operates a global network of over 5,000 educational and social centers. Chabad centers have been targets of numerous antisemitic attacks worldwide, including a tragic incident in Mumbai, India, where seven Jewish individuals were killed in 2008.
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Jo Elizabeth has a great interest in politics and cultural developments, studying Social Policy for her first degree and gaining a Masters in Jewish Philosophy from Haifa University, but she loves to write about the Bible and its primary subject, the God of Israel. As a writer, Jo spends her time between the UK and Jerusalem, Israel.
