LOS ANGELES, United States: The suspect in a Molotov cocktail attack on a march by Jewish protesters in Colorado will face an additional 12 charges for carrying out a hate crime, the US Justice Department said Wednesday.
Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national, already faces over 100 criminal counts for allegedly throwing firebombs and spraying burning gasoline at a group of people who gathered on June 1 in support of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
President Donald Trump cited the attack, which injured 15 people, to justify his decision to ban travel from 12 countries to the United States to “protect” the nation from “foreign terrorists.”
Authorities have said Soliman, 45, was in the United States illegally at the time of the incident as he had overstayed his tourist visa.
Alongside the newly announced federal charges, Soliman faces 28 attempted murder charges as well as a bevvy of other counts relating to his alleged use of violence.
He also faces a count of animal cruelty for a dog that was hurt.
Police who rushed to the scene of the attack found 16 unused Molotov cocktails and a backpack weed sprayer containing gasoline that investigators say Soliman had intended to use as a makeshift flamethrower.
In bystander videos, the attacker can be heard screaming “End Zionists!” and “Killers!“
It came less than two weeks after the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington, where a 31-year-old suspect, who shouted “Free Palestine,” was arrested.
Suspect in US fire attack on Jewish protest faces new hate crime charges
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Suspect in US fire attack on Jewish protest faces new hate crime charges
- Alongside the newly announced federal charges, Soliman faces 28 attempted murder charges
Spain cites Israeli ‘insults’ in decision to withdraw ambassador
- With the ambassador’s removal, Spain’s diplomatic representation will now be handled by its charge d’affaires
- “It’s become clear that Spain’s goodwill in maintaining cordial relations hasn’t been reciprocated,” Albares said
MADRID: Spain on Thursday explained its decision to permanently withdraw its ambassador to Israel, citing repeated “insults and slanders” by the country.
Veteran diplomat Ana Maria Salomon Perez was officially relieved of her duties on Tuesday at the proposal of Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares.
She was recalled from Tel Aviv in September after Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez unveiled measures designed to “stop the genocide in Gaza, pursue its perpetrators and support the Palestinian population.”
With the ambassador’s removal, Spain’s diplomatic representation will now be handled by its charge d’affaires, a lower-ranking official whose status is meant to reflect the downgraded relations.
Israel withdrew its ambassador to Madrid in 2024 after Spain recognized Palestinian statehood and has since also been represented by a charge d’affaires.
“It’s become clear that Spain’s goodwill in maintaining cordial relations hasn’t been reciprocated — not diplomatically — through an increase in Israel’s representation in Spain, nor by restraining insults and slanders aimed at the Spanish people,” Albares said.
“As a result, keeping an ambassador who had been called back for consultations for six months no longer made sense,” he added during an interview with Spanish public television.
Spain’s decision to definitively retire the ambassador follows years of tense exchanges between the two governments.
Sanchez, one of the most vocal critics of Israel’s war on Gaza, has also opposed the US-Israeli military strikes on Iran that began on February 28.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sarr has accused the Spanish government of “standing with tyrants” by opposing the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
He also accused Spain of being “complicit in inciting genocide against Jews and war crimes” after it recognized a Palestinian state.
Spain only established diplomatic ties with Israel in 1986 following the death of dictator General Francisco Franco in 1975.
Under Franco, Spain avoided recognizing Israel and maintained closer diplomatic ties with Arab states.
