Courtesy of JNS. Photo credit: Chet Strange/Getty Images
Lisa Turnquist of Louisville, Colorado, lays flowers and an Israeli flag at the site where 12 people were wounded in a Molotov cocktail attack during a pro-Israel rally outside the Boulder County Courthouse on June 2, 2025
(JNS) — Mohamed Sabry Soliman, a 45-year-old Egyptian national, has been charged with a federal hate crime and multiple state offenses after attacking a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado, with fire bombs and a makeshift flamethrower on Sunday, according to reports.
The Boulder attack occurred just 11 days after the fatal May 21 shooting of two Israeli Embassy staffers outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., further intensifying concerns over escalating antisemitic violence in the United States.
The assault on Sunday wounded 12 individuals, including an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, Boulder Police said during a Monday press briefing.
The incident occurred during a weekly event organized by “Run for Their Lives,” a group advocating for the release of hostages held by the Hamas terrorist group in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. Participants were marching through the Pearl Street Mall when Soliman, reportedly disguised as a gardener, approached and hurled incendiary devices into the crowd while shouting “Free Palestine” and other anti-Israel slogans, according to a Boulder Police affidavit.
Court filings indicate Soliman told investigators he had been planning the attack for over a year, initially intending to carry out a mass shooting. However, after being denied a firearm purchase due to his immigration status, he resorted to constructing fire bombs using gasoline and glass bottles. Authorities recovered 16 unused incendiary devices at the scene.
Soliman told investigators he intended to “kill all Zionist people” but delayed executing the attack until after his daughter’s high school graduation, as documented in State of Colorado v. Soliman.
Soliman entered the United States on a B-2 tourist visa in August 2022, which expired in February 2023. He applied for asylum the following month but has been residing in the country illegally since his work permit expired in March 2025.
A police affidavit supporting Soliman’s arrest stated that he was born in Egypt, spent 17 years living in Kuwait and moved to Colorado Springs three years ago. He currently resides there with his wife and five children, about 100 miles south of Boulder.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi described the fire-bombing as an “antisemitic terror attack.”
“In light of yesterday’s horrific attack, all terrorists, their family members, and terrorist sympathizers here on a visa should know that under the Trump administration we will find you, revoke your visa, and deport you,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on social media.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog also condemned the attack in a statement posted online on Monday:
“The terror attack on members of the Boulder, Colorado Jewish community demonstrating for the release of our hostages is sickening and outrageous. I spoke earlier with Renee Rockford, President & CEO of the Jewish Federation, and expressed outrage and deep solidarity on behalf of the people of Israel with the Jewish community of Boulder, and my prayer for the recovery and healing of the wounded,” wrote Herzog.
“This vile act of terror is a painful reminder that antisemitism knows no borders. But let me be clear: we will never let terror win. The American and Israeli peoples stand united — determined to bring all our hostages home and to ensure no Jew, anywhere, stands alone,” he continued.
“To the wounded and the entire community: you are in our hearts. Am Yisrael Chai.”
In response to the Boulder and Washington attacks, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a message to Jewish Americans, “This President has your back, and he’s not going to allow anyone to take part in violent terrorism — it’s acts of terrorism — in our country.”
Soliman faces 16 counts of attempted first-degree murder, eight counts of first-degree assault and one federal hate crime charge. If convicted, Soliman could face up to 384 years for the attempted murder charges alone, with additional penalties possible for the assault and hate crime counts, including a potential life sentence under federal law, per information from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The attack has drawn condemnation from political leaders across the spectrum. U.S. President Donald Trump stated his social media platform that such assaults “WILL NOT BE TOLERATED in the United States of America,” attributing the incident to lax immigration policies and vowing to enforce stricter border controls.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis condemned the attack, calling it “unacceptable” and stating that “hate has no place in our Colorado for anyone.”
Federal authorities are treating the attack as a targeted act of terrorism driven by ideological hatred. At a Monday press conference, FBI and local officials stated that Soliman had not been on law enforcement’s radar prior to the incident and is believed to have acted alone.
The victims, ranging in age from 52 to 88, suffered varying degrees of burn injuries. As of Monday, two individuals remained hospitalized, one of them in critical condition, hospital officials reported.
Soliman is currently being held on a $10 million bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, according to Boulder County Jail records.
