Boulder terror attack latest: Suspect charged with 16 counts of attempted murder

A 45-year-old man, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, was arrested after allegedly attacking a pro-Israeli hostage demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, with a Molotov cocktail and a makeshift flamethrower.

Six elderly victims were injured, some critically. Witnesses say Soliman shouted “Free Palestine” during the assault.

The FBI is treating the incident as a targeted act of violence. Parts of Pearl Street remain closed as the investigation continues.

Colorado officials, including the governor, condemned the violent attack in Boulder, where six people were injured during a pro-Israeli hostage walk.

The suspect, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, allegedly threw incendiary devices while shouting political slogans.

Governor Jared Polis and state senators called the act “heinous” and “hate-filled”.

“My thoughts go out to the people who have been injured and impacted by this heinous act of terror. Hate-filled acts of any kind are unacceptable. While details emerge, the state works with local and federal law enforcement to support this investigation,” he wrote in a statement.

The FBI considers the incident a “targeted act of violence” and is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism.

The suspect in the Boulder attack, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, is an Egyptian national, the CBS reported.

He reportedly entered the US on a non-immigrant visa in 2022, which expired in early 2023, and had been living in Colorado Springs.

Authorities say he shouted “Free Palestine” while using a makeshift flamethrower and incendiary device.

The FBI believes he acted alone.

The man accused of carrying out Sunday’s attack on a pro-Israeli demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, was taken to hospital with minor injuries after his arrest, police said.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, is alleged to have hurled an incendiary device into a group of demonstrators gathered in downtown Boulder, shouting “Free Palestine” as he did so.

Police chief Stephen Redfearn said officers responded to reports at 1.26pm of a man with a weapon and people being set on fire.

Mr Redfearn also mentioned that the police were investigating “a vehicle of interest” on the scene. Police and bomb squads are still “clearing the area for devices”, he said earlier.

Mark Michalek, an FBI special agent, told a press conference, citing witnesses: “It is clear that this is a targeted act of violence and the FBI is investigating this as an act of terrorism.”

Just after 2 p.m., Boulder Police announced they were responding to a report that a man with a weapon was setting people on fire, Chief Stephen Redfearn said at a Sunday press conference. An hour later, authorities ordered the evacuation of the 1200, 1300 and 1400 blocks of Pearl Street between Walnut and Pine.

At the time of the attack, Run for Their Lives, a group of demonstrators raising awareness for the Israeli hostages that remain in Gaza, were marching on Pearl Street, as they do every Sunday, organizations have said.

Soliman allegedly used a “makeshift flamethrower and threw an incendiary device” into the crowd as he yelled “Free Palestine!”, the FBI said.

Ed Victor, one of about 30 people marching, told CBS News that the group was peacefully walking down Pearl Street when the attack occurred.

“So we stood up, lined up in front of the old Boulder courthouse, and I was actually on the far west side. And there was somebody there that I didn’t even notice, although he was making a lot of noise, but I’m just focused on my job of being quiet and getting lined up. And, from my point of view, all of a sudden, I felt the heat. It was a Molotov cocktail equivalent, a gas bomb in a glass jar, thrown,” Victor told the outlet.

Israel’s UN ambassador Danny Danon condemned the attack on Jewish demonstrators in Boulder, Colorado, calling it an act of terrorism.

In a post on X, Mr Danon wrote: “Terrorism against Jews does not stop at the Gaza border — it is already burning the streets of America. Today, in Boulder, Colorado, Jewish people marched with a moral and humane demand: to return the hostages.

“In response, the Jewish protesters were brutally attacked, with an attacker throwing Molotov cocktails at them. Make no mistake – this is not a political protest, this is terrorism. The time for statements is over. It is time for concrete action to be taken against the instigators wherever they may be,” he added.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, hurled Molotov cocktails and used a makeshift flamethrower at a rally demanding the safe return of hostages from Hamas captivity.

Oren Segal of the Anti-Defamation League told BBC News that the Boulder attack was “completely shocking” and an “attack on the Jewish community”.

He urged action to stop the “rising tide of hate” against Jews, referencing a recent deadly attack on Israeli embassy staff in Washington.

“What we need to do is also figure out a way to stop normalising the type of rhetoric that we know animates this activity,” he added.

Authorities have confirmed the identities of eight victims – four women and four men, aged between 52 and 88 – who were taken to hospitals in the Denver metro area.

“We stand in full solidarity with those targeted. And we will continue to ensure that justice is pursued swiftly, support is provided to victims and their communities, and preventative action is taken to protect everyone’s safety. We stand in full solidarity with those targeted,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek.

“We will continue to ensure that justice is pursued swiftly, support is provided to victims and their communities, and preventative action is taken to protect everyone’s safety.”

One of the eight victims in the Boulder attack is an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, according to Rabbi Israel Wilhelm, the Chabad director at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar called the Boulder attack “pure antisemitism” and a “terrible antisemitic terror attack”.

He blamed it on “blood libels spread in the media” and said he had spoken to Israeli diplomats in the US.

“Shocked by the terrible antisemitic terror attack targeting Jews in Boulder, Colorado,” he wrote on X.

“This is pure Antisemitism, fueled by the blood libels spread in the media. I spoke with our Ambassador in the US and our Consul General in LA.”

“I pray for those who were wounded in the attack.”