Colorado terror suspect indicted on hate crime charges in Molotov cocktail attack on pro-Israel demonstrators

Federal authorities have unsealed an indictment charging 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman with 12 federal hate crime offenses stemming from a violent attack on a peaceful pro-Israel demonstration outside the Boulder County Courthouse on June 1. The indictment includes nine counts of violating the federal hate crimes statute, and three counts under federal statutes pertaining to the use of fire or explosives in the commission of a felony.

Soliman, an Egyptian national who was in the United States illegally after overstaying a visa, allegedly used multiple Molotov cocktails to target demonstrators affiliated with the group “Run for Their Lives,” which advocates for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. The attack injured six individuals, all of them Israeli supporters between the ages of 67 and 88, who were hospitalized with burn injuries.

According to the federal indictment, Soliman entered the park outside the courthouse around 1:30 pm carrying a black plastic container filled with at least 18 Molotov cocktails, as well as a backpack sprayer loaded with a flammable substance. Soliman reportedly ignited and threw two of the incendiary devices at the demonstrators while shouting “Free Palestine!” Witnesses and video footage reviewed by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Center on Extremism also captured him shouting, “How many children you killed,” “We have to end Zionists,” and “They are killers.”

Law enforcement later recovered a handwritten manifesto from Soliman’s vehicle, in which he declared that “Zionism is our enemies untill [sic] Jerusalem is liberated and they are expelled from our land.” The document also referred to Israel as a “cancer entity.”

In an interview with law enforcement, Soliman admitted that he deliberately targeted what he believed was a “Zionist” gathering. He stated that he had searched online for pro-Israel or “Zionist” events and identified the “Run for Their Lives” demonstration through flags and signs at the courthouse. He reportedly told investigators, “I decide[d] to take my revenge from these people.”

Soliman originally entered the US through Los Angeles International Airport on August 27, 2022, using a B1/B2 nonimmigrant visa. His visa expired on February 26, 2023, but Soliman remained in the country unlawfully. On September 29, 2022, he submitted a claim with US Citizenship and Immigration Services and was subsequently granted work authorization on March 29, 2023, valid through March 2025. The Biden administration’s immigration policies are under increased scrutiny due to the work authorization granted despite Soliman’s expired visa.

The attack is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Boulder Police Department. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino previously stated that the incident is being treated as “ideologically motivated violence.”

The US Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado is prosecuting the case alongside the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Soliman was originally charged by criminal complaint on June 2, just one day after the attack. His indictment formalizes the charges as the case proceeds through federal court. He remains in federal custody as he awaits trial.