Corlando: Six people, aged between 67 and 88, were injured—some with severe burns—during a suspected terror attack at a peaceful demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday.

The FBI has identified the suspect as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman, who reportedly used a makeshift flamethrower while shouting “Free Palestine” at demonstrators supporting Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

The incident took place at the Pearl Street pedestrian mall, near a rally organised by Run For Their Lives, a group advocating for the release of hostages still held by Hamas. Video from the scene showed a shirtless man with containers being approached by armed officers, as witnesses shouted about Molotov cocktails. Soliman was injured, taken into custody, and hospitalised.

The FBI confirmed it is treating the incident as a “targeted terror attack” motivated by ideology. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said initial evidence and witness accounts pointed to an ideologically motivated act. Director Kash Patel also confirmed federal involvement in investigating what he called a “targeted terror attack.”

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), citing video reviews, said the attacker appeared to shout, “How many children you killed,” “We have to end Zionists,” and “They are killers.”

Police Chief Steve Redfearn said officers responded at 1:26 pm local time after reports of a man setting people on fire. Redfearn confirmed that injuries were consistent with burn trauma and added that the group had assembled peacefully.

The National Counterterrorism Centre and FBI are jointly investigating. Authorities evacuated several blocks around the scene and later widened the perimeter. A “vehicle of interest” was also under investigation.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser condemned the act as a likely hate crime and said: “Hate has no place in Colorado... These violent acts—becoming more frequent and brazen—must stop.”

Governor Jared Polis described the attack as a “heinous act of terror” and said it was “unfathomable” that the Jewish community is enduring yet another attack—this time on the eve of the Jewish holiday Shavuot. He affirmed that the state was working closely with federal authorities.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the assault, stating, “Terror has no place in our great country,” and expressed solidarity with the victims.

In response, the New York Police Department announced an increase in patrols and security at religious sites across the city for Shavuot, deploying both high-visibility patrols and heavy weapons teams as a precaution.

The attack follows heightened global tensions surrounding the Israel–Hamas conflict, including recent violent incidents in the US. As of now, Soliman has not been formally charged, but officials have pledged full accountability.

(With AFP inputs)