NYC Stabbing Attack Sparks Fear Of Another Antisemitic Attack

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin condemned what she described as an “apparent antisemitic stabbing” Thursday after two men were stabbed in separate attacks on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.

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“The fear in the Jewish community is real. Every New Yorker deserves to feel safe in their neighborhood, regardless of their faith or identity,” Menin said in a statement, thanking the NYPD for quickly apprehending the suspect.

According to CBS News, the stabbings occurred at approximately 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

Police said the first victim, a 57-year-old man, was found with a stab wound to the torso near West 84th Street and Central Park West. A second victim, a 50-year-old man, was found several blocks away near West 86th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, also suffering a stab wound to the torso.

Both men were transported to a local hospital and are expected to survive. Police said one of the victims is Asian, and the other is Jewish. But according to Shomrim, both are Jewish, the Times of Israel reported.

A source near the scene told The Daily Wire that one of the victims was wearing a kippah and had just left afternoon Jewish prayer services before the attack. 

He was stabbed in the right side of his chest, according to The Times of Israel, which cited the victim’s rabbi. The rabbi said he spoke with the victim after the attack, who recalled hearing screams before “everything went blank for him.” The victim is in stable condition and is expected to be released before Shabbat, the rabbi told the outlet.

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The stabbings occurred on Tisha B’Av, the Jewish day of mourning commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples and other tragedies throughout Jewish history.

After the suspect was taken into custody, Manhattan Shomrim, a volunteer Jewish neighborhood watch organization, shared a photo on Instagram that it identified as the alleged attacker. The image shows a tall, thin man with gray hair wearing a camouflage T-shirt and black pants being led away by police.

The Anti-Defamation League’s New York/New Jersey office said its security partners had been told that two men, “at least one visibly Jewish,” were attacked by a man whom witnesses allege shouted, “Allahu Akbar.”

“This kind of violence has no place in NYC and must be immediately condemned and investigated,” the ADL said, adding that it is working with the NYPD and community partners to gather more information and support those affected. The organization also called on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to take action.

According to police, the suspect fled following the attacks before entering an apartment building on Amsterdam Avenue between West 88th and West 89th streets, where he barricaded himself inside an apartment. The NYPD Emergency Service Unit responded and negotiated with the suspect before taking him into custody at approximately 2:45 p.m. He was transported to a police station for questioning.

According to police sources cited by CBS News, the suspect has seven prior arrests, including two drug-related arrests dating back to 1991.

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Police have not said whether they are investigating the attacks as a hate crime.