A young Jewish man was stabbed by a stranger shouting “Free Palestine!” close to the Chabad headquarters in Crown Heights on Saturday, Chabad Lubavitch confirmed.
According to COLlive, a Chabad publication, the attack happened at around 2 a.m. local time, near Eastern Parkway and Kingston Avenue.
The perpetrator, reportedly a black male in his early 20s, asked the victim, “Do you want to die?” before stabbing him.
Footage of the incident was later publicized. The victim is expected to recover due to the quick response of the paramedic team and the location of the wound.
Crown Heights Brooklyn - 22 year old antisemite Vincent Sumpter goes on stabbing spree screaming “Free Palestine”, injures one Jewish man. Video here:pic.twitter.com/dzXDP5H1Wa
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) August 11, 2024
According to Yaacov Behrman, who runs PR for Chabad, local residents were able to detain the attacker until the police arrived and arrested him.
Rise of antisemitic incidents
“This act of hateful violence highlights the dangerous impact of antisemitic incitement and hate propagated by some local politicians and leaders in New York and across the United States,” Behrman wrote on X.
I can confirm that a hate crime stabbing occurred early this morning in Crown Heights, around 2 a.m., near Eastern Parkway and Kingston Avenue, close to Chabad Headquarters.The perpetrator, a Black male in his early 20s, shouted "Free Palestine" and, after an exchange of words…
— Yaacov Behrman (@ChabadLubavitch) August 11, 2024
The victim, although not named, is well-known to the local community, according to Behrman.
Devorah Halberstam, honorary commissioner of community safety, told COLlive that the incident was under investigation by the hate crimes department.