In a Sunday statement, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the department’s bomb squad determined that a device “ignited and deployed” at a protest outside Gracie Mansion in New York City the previous day was “not a hoax device or a smoke bomb,” but an “improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death.”
Tisch noted that “further analysis will be conducted, including on a second device.”
According to the New York Post, right-wing activist Jake Lang organized a protest on Saturday to oppose public Islamic calls to prayer. The event was disrupted by pro-Muslim counterprotesters, two of whom tossed devices at Lang’s group, one of which has been confirmed to be an IED.
Tisch reported that two pro-Muslim protesters, Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi, were arrested in connection with the incident and remain in police custody.
“The NYPD is working on this investigation with our partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and the FBI through our Joint Terrorism Task Force,” she added.
Three federal law enforcement sources told Fox News that both Balat and Kayumi “are believed to be U.S. citizens.”
News 12 New York reported, “The devices, which were a bit smaller than a football, appeared to be a jar wrapped in black tape, importantly, with nuts, bolts, and screws, along with a hobby fuse that could be lit.”
A second reporter said Tisch identified the men accused of hurling the devices as counterprotesters. While their names — Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi — might suggest this, the distinction is important because legacy media coverage has not clearly stated whether the suspects were from the group of protesters opposed to public Muslim prayer or part of the Muslim counterprotest group.
I wonder why they would do that.
The distinction made no difference to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani either. Following Tisch’s statement, he issued one of his own. It began:
Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang organized a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism. Such hate has no place in New York City. It is an affront to our city’s values and the unity that defines who we are.
His next remarks were even more infuriating. After condemning the violence, he attempted to shift blame onto the so-called “white supremacists,” who were merely protesting public Islamic calls to prayer in a predominantly Christian country.
What followed was even more disturbing. Violence at a protest is never acceptable. The attempt to use an explosive device and hurt others is not only criminal, it is reprehensible and the antithesis of who we are.
He needn’t worry. The legacy media has his back. Here are several headlines for the story on social media:
ABC News: “Police arrested several people after a smoke-generating ‘suspicious device’ was thrown during a protest at Gracie Mansion”CBS News: “Suspicious devices ignited during protests near Manhattan’s Gracie Mansion,Mamdani’s official residence”NBC New York: “Multiple arrests made after ‘suspicious devices’ found outside Gracie Mansion, home of Mayor Zohran Mamdani, during anti-Islam rally and counterprotest”
As the X user below notes, none of the titles accurately portray what happened.
Moreover, a disingenuous community note attached to the NBC post reads, “NYPD stated that the bombs were thrown at counter protesters and the perpetrators are named and in custody. They were not found. x.com/nypdnews/statu..”
The bogus link directs you to a nonexistent page: “Hmm…this page doesn’t exist.”
Elizabeth writes commentary for Legal Insurrection and The Washington Examiner. She is an academy fellow at The Heritage Foundation. Please follow Elizabeth on X or LinkedIn.
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