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Suspect charged with hate crimes for allegedly attacking Israeli near Times Square after outbreak of Israel-Hamas war
(New York Jewish Week) — The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office indicted a suspect on hate crimes charges for allegedly attacking an Israeli tourist near Times Square on Oct. 18.
The indictment, filed Tuesday, came as the NYPD released hate crimes statistics showing a sustained surge in antisemitic incidents since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
According to the indictment, in the Times Square incident 11 days after the Hamas attack, defendant Yehia Amin, 28, allegedly stalked and punched a 23-year-old Jewish Israeli who was walking with four friends at around 9:30 p.m. The Jewish men were all wearing kippahs when they passed by Amin, who recognized them as Jewish and began to pursue them.
Amin taunted the group, telling them, “Hamas should kill more of you,” “May Allah kill all the Jews,” and “All Jews should die,” according to the District Attorney’s Office. While Amin pursued the Israelis, he blasted music from his bluetooth speaker that he later described as “Hamas music.
The Jewish group tried to report Amin to a security guard, then headed to a train station to leave Times Square, but Amin continued following them, saying, “All Jews are crybabies,” and “I want to kill you for Gaza,” the indictment says. After around 10 minutes of harassment, Amin ran up behind the victim and punched him in the back of the head, causing substantial pain and minor injuries.
Amin fled the scene and the Israeli tourist and his friends followed him. A police officer joined the pursuit, caught Amin, and arrested him. While under arrest, Amin continued to shout antisemitic statements, including, “God kill all the Jewish people,” the District Attorney’s Office said.
Amin was charged with stalking in the first degree as a hate crime; assault in the third degree as a hate crime; and stalking in the third degree as a hate crime. He was also indicted for one count of aggravated harassment in the second degree. The case is being handled by the New York State Supreme Court.
“Violence stemming from hate and discrimination will not be tolerated,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement announcing the charges.
This is the latest of a few indictments from Bragg’s office for anti-Jewish hate crimes. Late last month, two women were charged after allegedly attacking a passerby who confronted them while they were tearing down posters of Israeli hostages held in Gaza. The week after the war started, a 19-year-old was charged for attacking an Israeli on the Columbia University campus.
Also Tuesday, the NYPD released hate crimes data for last month, indicating that a previously documented surge in antisemitic crimes in the city since Oct. 7 has continued.
There were 62 antisemitic hate crimes reported to police in November, averaging more than two incidents per day. The figure for antisemitic incidents last month represented a 32% increase over the same period last year, and was similar to the 69 antisemitic attacks reported in October. Anti-Jewish incidents made up 65% of all hate crimes reported to police last month. There were seven anti-Muslim hate crimes.
Since Jan. 1, there have been 294 anti-Jewish hate crimes, according to the NYPD. During the first 11 months of last year, when the total number of hate crimes against all groups were higher, there were 253 antisemitic incidents. Jewish security groups have said many antisemitic attacks likely go unreported. Recent incidents have included graffiti, physical assaults and threats. Jewish groups have also reported a spike in antisemitism nationally since Oct. 7.
Before the outbreak of the war, the previous high-water mark for antisemitic incidents this year was in March, which saw 32 antisemitic incidents reported to police.
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The post Suspect charged with hate crimes for allegedly attacking Israeli near Times Square after outbreak of Israel-Hamas war appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Hostage Deal talks Stalled as Hamas Rejects New Israeli Framework – Report
US President Donald Trump and Qatar’s Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani attend a signing ceremony in Doha, Qatar, May 14, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Brian Snyder
i24 News – i24NEWS’s diplomatic affairs correspondent, Amichai Stein, reported Sunday evening that negotiations over a potential hostage deal have hit a standstill.
According to political sources, “the negotiations are stalled, Hamas is refusing the new framework presented by Israel.”
Throughout the day, no direct negotiation meetings were held. Instead, the small security cabinet is set to convene this evening to discuss the state of the talks.
There is also speculation of a potential meeting between Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and US President Donald Trump to address the impasse and broader regional dynamics.
In parallel, Arab diplomats have reportedly issued a warning to Israel regarding its plan to construct a “humanitarian city” in Gaza. According to sources, diplomats cautioned that the initiative could harm the fragile fabric of the Abraham Accords and inflame regional tensions.
The post Hostage Deal talks Stalled as Hamas Rejects New Israeli Framework – Report first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran: ‘Israel Will Pay the Price’ for Allegedly Trying to Kill Pezeshkian
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian delivers a speech during the National Army Day parade ceremony in Tehran, Iran, April 18, 2025. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
i24 News – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was slightly injured in the leg during an Israeli airstrike, according to a report on Sunday by the Iranian news agency Fars, prompting Iran to launch a widespread probe to root out suspected moles that infiltrated the Islamic Republic’s highest ranks.
Al Jazeera cited an unnamed Iranian official who said, “The assassination attempt on President Pezeshkian will not go unanswered – Israel will pay the price.”
According to Fars, which has ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the attack took place on the morning of Monday, June 16, while a meeting of the Supreme National Security Council was held on the lower floors of a building in western Tehran. In addition to the Iranian president, Speaker of Parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, the head of the judiciary Mohseni Ajei, as well as other senior regime officials were attending this meeting.
Six bombs or missiles targeted the entry and exit points of the building in order to block evacuation routes and disrupt air circulation, the report said. This operation is said to have been inspired by the elimination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut last year. Following the explosions, power was cut on that floor, but the leaders managed to escape through an emergency exit prepared in advance.
Pezeshkian and several other officials sustained minor leg injuries during the evacuation, according to the agency. Given the accuracy of the information used in the attack, the media outlet reports that authorities are investigating the possibility of collaboration with Israel.
Official confirmation and reactions
A few days earlier, a high-ranking military leader in the Revolutionary Guards, Mohsen Rezaei, had stated on state television that Israel had “attacked six locations where the Supreme National Security Council had gathered, but none of its members had suffered even minor injuries.”
Pezeshkian had previously accused Israel of having attempted to assassinate him. “They tried, yes,” he told American journalist Tucker Carlson during an interview last week. “They acted accordingly, but they failed.”
The post Iran: ‘Israel Will Pay the Price’ for Allegedly Trying to Kill Pezeshkian first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Hezbollah Violates Ceasefire 7 Times a Day on Average, IDF Figures Show
A drone view of buildings in Lebanon, next to the Israel-Lebanon border, following the ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah, as seen from Metula in northern Israel, Dec. 2, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Ilan Rosenberg
i24 News – The Shiite jihadists of Hezbollah violate the ceasefire agreement with Israel more than seven times a day on average, according to Israel Defense Forces data obtained by i24NEWS and made public for the first time on Saturday.
Israel has flagged upward of 1,200 violations by Hezbollah in its report to the US-led five-country monitoring panel tasked with supervising the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
Of these, 650 violations were relayed to the Lebanese army for handling, while the rest of the times the IDF responded by attacking the violators.
The Lebanese army has identified 390 additional violations on its own initiative and filed a report saying that it had handled them.
Thus official data shows that the Lebanese army handled 52% of all violations, and 440 of the targets Israel flagged by Israel.
The majority of the infractions the Lebanese army manages to stem are concentrated in the south of the country.
The post Hezbollah Violates Ceasefire 7 Times a Day on Average, IDF Figures Show first appeared on Algemeiner.com.