NYC Mayor Mamdani: Bombing Near Home, 2 Charged

Two men have been charged with providing material support to a terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction after homemade bombs were thrown during protests near New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s home.

Charges Filed Against Two Men

Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, also face charges of transportation of explosive materials, unlawful possession of destructive devices and interstate transportation and receipt of explosives, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court.

ISIS Affiliation Claimed

Body-worn camera footage cited in the complaint shows that as Kayumi was being placed into an NYPD vehicle following his arrest, a person in the crowd asked why he’d done this, and Kayumi responded with “ISIS,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a Monday press conference.

After waiving his Miranda rights, Kayumi said he had watched ISIS propaganda on his phone and that his actions that day were partly inspired by ISIS, Tisch said.

Statements Made by Suspects

Balat made statements without being questioned by officers and said “this isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the Prophet. We take action … If I didn’t do it someone else will come and do it,” Tisch added.

Balat also told authorities that he had pledged allegiance to the extremist group, the court document said.

Authorities asked Balat if he was familiar with the Boston Marathon bombing and if that was what he hoped to accomplish. Balat responded, “No, even bigger. It was only three deaths,” according to the complaint.

IEDs Thrown During Protests

The first improvised explosive device was thrown as anti-Islam protesters clashed with counterprotesters and did not explode. The same man who threw the IED lit a second bomb, dropped it on the street and ran, the police commissioner said. It also did not explode.

“Preliminary test results determined that these were not hoax devices, nor smoke bombs. They were improvised explosive devices that could have caused serious injury or death,” Tisch said.

A third device – found Sunday – is being investigated “in connection with” Saturday’s incident, NYPD said. That device tested negative for explosive material, Tisch said.

Clash Between Protesters

The violence Saturday erupted during an anti-Islam protest organized by a right-wing influencer that was outnumbered by a crowd of more than 100 counterprotesters, officials said. It only took one hour from the time the suspects crossed the George Washington Bridge into the city to their arrest after tossing the IEDs, Tisch said.

They do not have criminal histories, she added.

Mayor and Governor Respond

The clash unfolded during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. Mamdani, who is the city’s first Muslim mayor, said he and his wife, Rama Duwaji, were not at Gracie Mansion at the time.

“The police department has determined that these were improvised explosive devices made to injure, maim or worse,” Mamdani said at the news conference. “Anyone who comes to New York City to bring violence to our streets will be held accountable in accordance with the law.”

Details of the Devices

Both devices recovered Saturday were slightly smaller than footballs and appeared to be jars wrapped in black tape containing bolts, screws and a hobby fuse, Tisch said, citing the NYPD bomb squad’s preliminary analysis. The first device apparently was made with an unstable material called TATP, the commissioner said. “TATP is a dangerous and highly volatile homemade explosive that has been used in IED attacks around the world,” Tisch said.

The second device was still being analyzed.

Mamdani said Saturday’s anti-Islam protest was “rooted in bigotry and racism” – but what followed was “even more disturbing,” he said in a statement Sunday.

“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,” the mayor said.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said while “the Islamophobic protests that triggered all this is abhorrent,” she also condemned those who reacted violently. “Neither belongs in New York – the reaction to the protest or the protest itself,” Hochul said. “Yes, you have a right to protest. But this was all outside the bounds.”

The anti-Islam protester accused of using pepper spray was also arrested, Tisch said. Another three people were arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct and obstructing traffic.

The police commissioner declined to detail what made investigators believe the incident may be inspired by ISIS, but said more details could emerge after a criminal complaint is unsealed. Tisch and the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York will hold a news conference Monday afternoon.

The incident was the first time in nearly a decade that IEDs targeted residents in the nation’s largest city, Tisch said. “The last time that an IED targeting people was deployed in New York City was in 2017, when Akayed Ullah detonated a device strapped to his torso in the pedestrian underpass connecting the Port Authority bus terminal and the Times Square subway station,” she said. “No one other than the attacker was injured in that incident. And once again, we were fortunate that the devices used this weekend did not cause the kind of harm that they were certainly capable of causing.”

James Barnacle, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office, thanked the NYPD officers who ran toward the devices knowing they could detonate. “If it weren’t for the bravery of two New York’s finest we could have had a much more tragic incident,” he said.

Both the police chief and the governor said they’re ramping up resources to protect the public. “We have been in a heightened state of alert in New York City since the start of hostilities in Iran, and we remain in that posture,” Tisch said. “We will continue to deploy additional counterterrorism resources throughout New York City, including heavy weapons teams, canine units, aviation and more,” the police chief said. And “as the investigation into the terrorist attack near Gracie Mansion and military action in Iran continue,” the governor posted on X. “New York State remains in a heightened threat environment.”

More than 1,000 members of the National Guard have been deployed on state active duty, protecting critical transit sites across New York City, Hochul said. And state police “are increasing their presence at sensitive sites across New York.”