Jump directly to the content

THE shirtless flamethrower and firebomb "terrorist" Mohamed Sabry Soliman has been charged with two counts of murder.

The 45-year-old was arrested after people at a rally in support of Israeli hostages in Boulder, , were targeted with a flamethrower and firebombs.

Shirtless man holding two bottles.
11
The suspect in the attack at Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado
Police officers detaining a shirtless suspect.
11
The bare-chested man was arrested at the sceneCredit: Reuters
People gathering in a park near a statue.
11
Eight people were injured in the attackCredit: X
Firefighters carrying an injured person on a stretcher.
11
Emergency officials take one of the victims to hospital on a stretcher after the attackCredit: CBS
Collage showing the location of a terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, including maps and photos of the aftermath.
11

Around 30 demonstrators had gathered for a Run for Their Lives march, calling for the release of all of the Israeli hostages who remain in Gaza.

Four women and four men aged 52 to 88 were injured in the attack and taken to hospital, Boulder cops said.

The condition of those wounded range from minor to "very serious," with at least one of the victims in critical condition.

The suspect was heard to have yelled "Free Palestine" during the attack, according to FBI's special agent Mark Michalek.

read more news

He was named as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman.

Soliman has been booked on two counts of murder in the 1st degree, according to online records.

But the circumstances around the charges remain unclear as officials haven't announced any deaths resulting from the Boulder attack.

There has also been no update on the condition of injured victims.

He has been charged with one count of attempted murder, one count of first-degree assault, one cont of causing serious injury to an at-risk adult or someone over 70 and one count of using explosives or incendiary devices.

Dramatic moment Putin’s ‘war hero’ who led slaughter of Mariupol is killed in mysterious suicide bomb attack

Soliman has been described as an "illegal alien" by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.

The Egyptian national is said to have illegally overstayed his visa before being issued a new work permit in the US, according to federal officials.

According to Soliman first arrived in the US in August 2022 with a non-immigrant visa before being authorised to stay through to February 2023, but didn't leave.

In September 2022, he filed a claim with the US Citizenship and Immigration Services which then granted him work authorisation in March 2023 which remained valid through March this year.

Soliman was also injured and was taken to the hospital to be treated following the attack, but authorities didn't elaborate on the nature of his injuries.

Deputy Chief of Staff Miller wrote on X before calling Soliman an "illegal alien": "The Biden Admin granted the alien a visa and then, when he illegally overstayed, they gave him a work permit.

"Immigration security is national security.

"No more hostile migration. Keep them out and send them back."

Shirtless man carrying bottles runs past a park bench.
11
A shirtless man, believed to be the suspect, brandishing bottles of liquidCredit: instagram/@sebastian_gorka
Man holding papers and talking while a shirtless man walks in the background.
11
The suspect was heard to have yelled 'Free Palestine' during the attackCredit: X
Police officer arresting a man on the ground.
11
The moment the alleged attacker is pinned to the ground by a copCredit: X

And Texan Congressman Brandon Gill claimed that the Biden administration allowed Soliman to enter the US on the B1/B2 visa program.

Gill wrote: "He overstayed his visa so Biden awarded him with a work permit.

"He then overstayed his work permit, before brutally attacking American Jews."

No charges were immediately announced but officials said they expect to hold him fully accountable.

Soliman was booked in the county jail before midnight on Sunday on multiple felony charges, online jail records reveal.

According to FBI deputy director Dan Bongino, the attack is being investigated as an act of "ideologically motivated violence" based on various early information.

But a source told that Soliman may have suffered mental health issues.

They said: "He’s shirtless, screaming, used rudimentary devices, and stuck around to be arrested."

The FBI has recently been focusing on foreign-inspired extremists who may look to use high-powered weapons to cause mass casualty incidents.

On the other hand, the alleged attacker used Molotov cocktails which can be made with easily-obtained materials, suggesting he may not fit the profile of a terrorist looking to cause large-scale casualties, the source added.

One of the victims injured in the attack, an 88-year-old, is a Holocaust survivor, the Chabad director at University of Colorado Boulder told CBS.

Video from the scene showed a witness shouting, "He's right there. He's throwing Molotov cocktails," as a police officer with his gun drawn advanced on a bare-chested suspect with containers in each hand.

Images show one victim being taken away on a stretcher by medics as shocked onlookers watch on.

Officers responded quickly after being alerted of the carnage at around 1.26pm local time on Sunday.

Mass evacuations were quickly ordered near the crime scene on 13th and Pearl Street.

Video circulating on social media showed multiple fires burning on the grassy areas around the outdoor mall as huge plumes of smoke billow into the air.

Crime scene at Boulder's Pearl Street Mall.
11
FBI says it is investigating ‘targeted terror attack’ in ColoradoCredit: CBS
FBI evidence response team members at a crime scene.
11
An FBI team is investigating an attack on demonstrators calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in GazaCredit: AFP
Law enforcement officials investigating an attack, using a robot.
11
Law enforcement officials investigate after the attackCredit: AP

Several people can also be seen lying motionless on the ground as bystanders pour water on their apparent burns.

Screams can be heard in the background of the short clips.

FBI Director Kash Patel posted on social media: "Our agents and local law enforcement are on the scene already, and we will share updates as more information becomes available."

Mr Patel also described it as a terror attack.

Colorado Governor Jared Polis said that "hate-filled acts of any kind are unacceptable".

A joint statement from Boulder's Jewish community read: "We are saddened and heartbroken to learn that an incendiary device was thrown at walkers at the Run for Their Lives walk on Pearl Street.

"We don't have all the details of what is unfolding, and we promise to keep our community informed.

"Our hearts go out to those who witnessed this horrible attack, and prayers for a speedy recovery to those who were injured."

Boulder is a popular university city northwest of Denver with around 105,000 residents.

Read More on The Sun

The city's cops say they plan on stepping up security at Jewish events in the next coming days.

Boulder County Historic Courthouse, close to the scene of the attack, is to remain closed on Monday.

Washington DC attack

By Georgie English, Foreign News Reporter

ELIAS Rodriguez, 30, is accused of shooting dead the soon-to-be engaged couple at close range with a handgun just after 9pm.

The fatal shooting took place near the Capital Jewish Museum which sits just steps away from an FBI office and 2km from the White House lawn a few weeks ago.

President Donald Trump decried the bloodshed in the capital as "horrible" and said: "Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA."

The victims were named as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim.

Yaron, a research assistant, and Sarah, who organised trips to Israel, were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum.

The suspect then approached and opened fire after being seen pacing outside the building.

He was detained by security before being arrested by cops as he chanted "Free, free Palestine".

Rodriguez is understood to have been a far-left activist who had previously attended pro-Palestine marches.

A heartbreaking picture of the victims smiling was been released by Israel's US embassy as they paid a tribute to the two workers.

In a post on X, the embassy said the couple were "our friends and colleagues" and in "the prime of their lives".

Yechiel Leiter, Israel's ambassador to the US, later revealed Yaron, 28, had purchased a ring earlier in the week.

He had the "intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem", Leiter added.

Topics