Filmed Live: Attack on Orthodox Jewish Boys in Brooklyn Sparks Hate Crimes Investigation

An unidentified man riding a bicycle in the US city of New York violently attacked two Orthodox Jewish boys as they played on a sidewalk on Sunday evening.

The attack in Brooklyn, caught on video, prompted the New York Police Department’s (NYPD) hate crimes unit to open an investigation into possible anti-Semitic motive, New York Post reported. The attack on boys ages 11 and 13 happened around 9 p.m. Sunday on Franklin Avenue near Myrtle Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Witnesses described the attacker stopping his bicycle between parked cars before aggressively confronting the children, who were wearing traditional Orthodox Jewish clothing. The accused pushed one boy to the ground and punched another before kicking and stomping on him.

Although police noted minor injuries, including cuts to the back of the head, they did not report any explicit anti-Semitic remarks from the attacker. The attacker fled the scene on a bicycle and, as of Thursday, no arrests had been made in connection with the incident. The investigation continues amid the war in Gaza, which has led to a rise in anti-Semitism in the United States and Europe.

Last year, the New York-based Jewish Anti-Defamation League (ADL) recorded 8,873 incidents of anti-Semitism in the United States, the highest number since the organization began to track data in 1979. The annual audit released by the Jewish civil rights group found a 140% increase from the previous year, surpassing the all-time high set in 2022.

These incidents, which include harassment, vandalism and assault, reflect a significant increase from the nearly 3,700 cases reported in 2022. The majority of documented incidents, totaling 6,535, involved harassment, characterized by anti-Semitic slurs , stereotypes or conspiracy theories directed against Jews. individuals or those perceived as such. This category encompasses both online and in-person events. The ADL audit identified 2,177 cases of vandalism and 161 incidents of assault.