New York and federal authorities are looking for links between the Islamic State terror group and two pro-Muslim counterprotesters accused of hurling homemade explosives at a rally against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over the weekend.
New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Monday that Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, are being held on charges of creating and throwing the explosives, and suspicion of trying to carry out an act of terror.
Authorities said the pair threw an improvised explosive device at the roughly 20 protesters who were part of the “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City,” which was held Saturday outside Gracie Mansion, the official residence of Mr. Mamdani.
“The police department has determined that these were improvised explosive devices made to injure, maim or worse,” said Mr. Mamdani, who is Muslim. “Thanks to the swift and decisive actions of NYPD officers at the scene, both men were immediately taken into custody, and the devices they brought taken off of our streets.”
Videos of the anti-Mamdani rally, which was organized by conservative influencer Jake Lang, show a suspect running up to the demonstrators with a lit explosive in hand. He throws the smoke-spewing bomb into the small crowd and appears to yell “Allahu Akbar” before running off, according to the footage.
The same suspect lit another explosive but dropped it as police ran toward him, authorities said. It did not detonate. Commissioner Tisch said officers found a third unused explosive in a vehicle tied to the two suspects.
NYPD’s top cop previously described the devices as “a bit smaller than a football” and said they appeared to resemble “a jar wrapped in black tape.” Several media outlets reported the devices were filled with nuts, bolts and screws that would have sent shrapnel flying out upon explosion.
Substances detected in the explosives include triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, which the commissioner said is found in improvised explosive devices made internationally.
“TATP is a dangerous and highly volatile homemade explosive that has been used in IED attacks around the world,” Commissioner Tisch said. “Our bomb squad then rendered safe both devices, and as of now, explosive evidence samples are being sent to an FBI lab for further testing.”
The commissioner said there are no known connections between the suspects and the Iranian regime.
Iranian leaders are known to activate sleeper cells inside enemy countries in response to attacks on the regime, such as the U.S.-Israel military strike last month that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
But one of the suspects reportedly made pro-Islamic State statements during his post-arrest interrogation.
Commissioner Tisch said the men’s connection to the Islamic State will be detailed in federal charging documents, which were expected to be made public later Monday.
Mr. Balat and Mr. Kayumi are U.S. citizens, but their parents immigrated to the U.S. from the Middle East, according to Fox News.
Mr. Balat’s parents hail from Turkey and became naturalized citizens in 2017. Mr. Kayumi’s parents are from Afghanistan, and his parents naturalized during the 2000s.
Investigators are probing whether the two have visited areas in the Middle East that are known as terrorist recruitment hotspots.
Mr. Balat traveled to Turkey in January and went to the country several times last year, according to CBS News. Mr. Kayumi visited Turkey and Saudi Arabia in 2024.
Officials said the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and federal attorneys are leading the terrorism investigation into the two suspects.
The bomb-throwing in New York City happened a week after a mass shooting in Austin, Texas, that is being investigated as a potential terrorist attack. Three people were killed and 19 wounded after a man opened fire on bar patrons in the heart of Austin’s nightlife corridor. Police shot and killed suspect Ndiaga Diagne, 53, at the scene.
Diagne, a native of Senegal who became a U.S. citizen in 2013, was wearing a “Property of Allah” sweatshirt and an Iranian flag T-shirt during the attack, investigators said.
The FBI said there were potential terrorism indicators in the shooting but has not gone into specifics about what those could be.
• Matt Delaney can be reached at mdelaney@washingtontimes.com.
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