New York protest blast scare: 2 held; reports cite naturalised US citizen family background

A device thrown by a counter-protester at an anti-Islam demonstration in New York City has been confirmed as an improvised explosive device, according to preliminary police findings. Authorities are also examining a second suspicious device discovered nearby as investigations continue.

The incident occurred on Saturday during a demonstration organised outside the residence of Mayor Zohran Mamdani in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Police said two people were taken into custody in connection with the confrontation.

Explosive device thrown into crowd

The protest, titled “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City”, was led by far-right activist Jake Lang and drew a small number of participants. However, it was met by a much larger group of counter-demonstrators.

According to police, one counter-protester threw a smoking object containing nuts, bolts, screws and a “hobby fuse” into the crowd.

In a social media post on Sunday, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the bomb squad had determined the object was not a hoax device or smoke bomb but an “improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death”.

The device extinguished itself only steps away from police officers, Tisch noted. She added that the same individual who threw it later received a second device from another counter-protester, which was dropped and did not appear to ignite.

Charges against the two counter-protesters were still pending as of Sunday. Tisch said the police department was working with federal prosecutors and the FBI. The FBI confirmed that agents from its Joint Terrorism Task Force were involved in the investigation.

Suspicious device found nearby

Later on Sunday, police said investigators had “identified a suspicious device in a vehicle on East End Avenue between 81st Street and 82nd Street.”

Authorities closed several streets in the area and ordered “limited evacuations of buildings” while the bomb squad assessed and worked to remove the device.

Meanwhile, another individual associated with Lang’s protest was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment, assault and unlawful possession of a noxious matter after allegedly using mace against counter-protesters.

Organiser’s past charges and background of suspects

Lang has previously faced charges including assaulting an officer with a baseball bat and civil disorder before receiving clemency as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping clemency for January 6 defendants last year. He recently announced his candidacy for the US Senate in Florida.

Earlier this year, Lang organised a rally in Minneapolis supporting Trump’s immigration crackdown, but the event drew an angry crowd of counter-protesters who quickly chased him away.

Initial reports indicated that two people allegedly connected to the bombing incident are from families with roots in Turkey and Afghanistan. Both sets of parents are reported to have later become naturalised citizens of the United States.

Such incidents frequently trigger political and public debate around immigration policy, with some voices calling for tighter controls or more rigorous vetting procedures. In media discourse, these cases are sometimes discussed within a broader “domestic security versus immigration” framework.

Mayor Mamdani condemned the violence in a statement on Sunday, saying: “Violence at a protest is never acceptable. The attempt to use an explosive device and hurt others is not only criminal, it is reprehensible and the antithesis of who we are.”