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Attack classified as terrorism
Law enforcement in New York is treating the throwing of improvised explosive devices near Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s official residence as an ISIS-inspired act of terrorism.
“An improvised explosive device that was thrown Saturday during protests outside New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's residence, and two other devices, are being investigated as an ISIS-inspired act of terrorism, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday.”
Police and federal authorities said the incident involved one device thrown during clashes around Gracie Mansion and two other devices identified afterward, and investigators are treating the case as terrorism.
Officials framed the act as ideologically motivated and planned, and federal prosecutors have charged two men in connection with the events.
Device composition and danger
Authorities described the devices as capable of causing mass harm: at least one was reportedly built with the highly unstable explosive TATP and contained shrapnel intended to maximize casualties, while witnesses saw flames and smoke when a device was thrown.
Officials warned the improvised devices "could have caused serious injury or death," and investigators later recovered additional devices and materials in a vehicle and elsewhere as part of the probe.
Suspects' statements and charges
Federal court documents and police statements say the two accused — Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, both from Pennsylvania — admitted inspiration by or affiliation with ISIS and face terrorism-related charges.
“Balat allegedly wrote on a piece of paper that he had "pledged allegiance to the Islamic state."”
Prosecutors allege statements and evidence including a note in which Balat 'pledged allegiance to the Islamic state,' Kayumi's exclamation of "ISIS" on arrest, and claims in interviews that link the pair to Islamic State material; they have been charged with offenses such as providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction.
Protests and crowd dynamics
The devices were thrown amid a tense confrontation between a small anti-Muslim demonstration and a much larger counterprotest outside Gracie Mansion.
Organizers of the anti-Islam demonstration were led by influencer Jake Lang and drew roughly 20 participants, while a counterprotest under slogans such as 'Kick the Nazis Out of New York' peaked around 125 people; tensions escalated after pepper spray was used and the explosive devices were later thrown from the counterprotest area according to police.
Investigation and open questions
Investigators have recovered physical evidence and searched the suspects' homes, but authorities and analysts say key questions remain about whether the two were directed by others or self-radicalized online.
“The federal complaint alleges that Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, attempted to detonate two apparent explosive devices near Gracie Mansion and were later found with materials in a car parked a few blocks away, including a hobby fuse, an empty metal can and a notebook listing chemical ingredients that could be used to build explosives.”
Law enforcement reported finding explosive-making materials and a notebook with chemical ingredient lists in a car, an automatic license reader tracked the vehicle's entry into the city, and the FBI executed raids at the suspects' residences; at the same time officials have publicly said they have not yet determined whether the pair were recruited or radicalized remotely.
