A man accused of attacking a pro-Israel demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, with Molotov cocktails and a makeshift flamethrower has been charged with a federal hate crime after admitting he targeted what he called a “Zionist group” and had planned the assault for a year, according to federal authorities.
Mohamed Sabry Soliman, a 45-year-old Egyptian national who was in the United States illegally after entering during the Biden administration, injured eight people during Sunday’s attack on Pearl Street Mall, where demonstrators were gathering for a weekly “Run for Their Lives” event demanding the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Witnesses and investigators say Soliman shouted, “Free Palestine” and “End Zionist,” during the assault.
According to an FBI affidavit filed Monday, Soliman confessed after his arrest that he researched how to make Molotov cocktails on YouTube, purchased the materials, and traveled to Boulder specifically to attack the event.
“He stated that he wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead,” the affidavit said. Soliman also told investigators he deliberately waited until after his daughter’s graduation to carry out the plan.
He arrived at the rally around 12:55 p.m. and waited for participants to begin their walk, authorities said. When the group gathered near the Boulder County Courthouse, Soliman threw two incendiary devices, igniting a fireball that left multiple victims with serious burns. One remains in critical condition.
Local and federal officers said they recovered 14 additional unlit Molotov cocktails and a backpack sprayer filled with gasoline mixed with xylene, a highly flammable chemical, near the scene. A search of Soliman’s car revealed handwritten notes mentioning “Israel,” “Palestine,” and “USAID.”
Soliman is being charged with violating 18 U.S.C. §§ 249(a)(1) and (a)(2), federal hate crime statutes involving acts of violence motivated by actual or perceived religion or national origin. He is also facing state charges for attempted murder in Colorado.
The Trump administration’s Justice Department is taking the case seriously, with Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon telling the Washington Examiner on Monday her office has been keeping a close eye on the case since Sunday.
“The Department of Justice has swiftly charged the illegal alien perpetrator of this heinous attack with a federal hate crime and will hold him accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Dhillon said in a statement. “Our prayers are with the victims and our Jewish community across the world.”
Soliman entered the U.S. on a B-2 tourist visa in August 2022, which expired six months later. He filed for asylum in September 2022 but remained in the country unlawfully, according to DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin, who said the suspect was “illegally in our country.” While the Biden administration granted Soliman a work permit in March 2023, that authorization expired in March of this year.
President Donald Trump said the attack was “horrific” and vowed to prosecute Soliman “to the fullest extent of the Law,” using the incident to renew calls for stronger immigration enforcement. “He must go out under ‘TRUMP’ Policy,” Trump said on Truth Social.
“This is yet another example of why we must keep our Borders SECURE, and deport Illegal, Anti-American Radicals from our Homeland,” Trump posted to Truth Social Monday morning.
The Boulder assault is also the latest in a series of violent acts targeting Jewish and pro-Israel communities in the U.S. The FBI recorded 1,989 anti-Jewish hate crimes in 2023, the highest number on record.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser agreed the attack appears to be a hate crime, and FBI Director Kash Patel has described it as an “act of terror.”
WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT BOULDER ATTACK TARGETING PRO-ISRAEL RUN FOR THEIR LIVES GROUP
The weekly walk targeted in the attack was organized by Run for Their Lives, a grassroots group with over 100 chapters across 30 states, founded by Israeli Americans in the Bay Area after Hamas’s Oct. 7 assault on Israel.
Read the full FBI affidavit below:
Boulder suspect charged with federal hate crime for targeting ‘Zionist group’ by reportoftheday on Scribd