By According to NBC New York, a 16-year-old Muslim girl was targeted on her way to school while taking the New York City Subway southbound 5 train heading to Union Square on Wednesday around 9 a.m., prompting authorities to investigate the incident further.
The NYPD reported that the incident is most likely another hate crime driven by the ongoing bias against Islam and Muslim communities in the U.S.
The police source stated that the predator sat down next to the girl before he forcibly pulled out her hijab and verbally abused her, saying, “You’re a terrorist, you don’t belong here.”
It’s worth noting that Muslims have witnessed a substantial surge in hate crimes targeted against them in the aftermath of Israel’s latest attack on Palestinians.
Earlier this month, the 5-year-old Palestinian-American boy, Wadea Al-Fayoume, and his mother, Hanaan Shahin, were victims of similar faith-based hate crimes in Chicago, Illinois. The little boy died after being stabbed 26 times by their 71-year-old Islamophobic landlord, Joseph Czuba.
“You Muslims must die!” said Czuba as he relentlessly attacked the victims with his military-styled knife.
According to the official statement issued by Will County sheriff’s office in Illinois, Shahin and her 5-year-old son “were targeted by the suspect due to them being Muslim and the ongoing Middle Eastern conflict involving Hamas and the Israelis.”
“Deputies located two victims inside the residence in a bedroom. Both victims had multiple stab wounds to their chest, torso, and upper extremities,” the statement added.
The man responsible for attacking the teenage Muslim girl is currently nowhere to be seen, but NYPD’s police officer Mohamed Amen said that they’re scouting around to find him.
“I’m very sorry for her and her family and everyone in the city. We are going through a challenging time right now,” Amen told NBC New York. “But I want to assure her and everyone that the police department is really looking after everyone in the city.”