Three Palestinian college students were gunned down Saturday while walking to a family dinner in Vermont, victims of a horrific partial attack, according to Arab-American authorities and officials.
At least two of the men, including an Ivy League student at Brown University, were wearing traditional Keffiyeh scarves when they were wounded, said Husam Zomlot, head of the Palestinian mission in the United Kingdom. in a post on X on Sunday.
Zomlot said the three Palestinians, identified by relatives as Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Ali Ahmad and Kinnann Abdalhamid, “were shot last night as they headed to a family dinner in Burlington.
“His crime? Wearing the Palestinian keffiyeh,” she said. “They are seriously injured.”
The American Arab Committee Against Discrimination said the victims are in their 20s and identified Awartani as a Brown student, Abdalhamid from Haverford College in Pennsylvania and Ahmad from Trinity University.
“All three victims survived the initial shooting, however, two of them are currently in the ICU and one of the students has suffered very critical and serious injuries,” the ADC said in a statement.
Palestinian college students Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Ali and Kenan Abdalhamid were shot while walking down a street in Vermont on Saturday.X/@hzomlot
Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said in a statement Sunday that he had contacted federal investigators in the case.
“In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate crime,” Murad said. “And I have already been in contact with federal investigative and prosecution partners to prepare for that if it is proven.
“But now that the victims are safe and receiving medical attention, our next priority is to identify, locate and apprehend the suspect,” the chief said.
First responders carry a victim to an ambulance after a gunman shot and wounded three college students of Palestinian descent. via REUTERS The victims are 20 years old and identified Awartani as a student at Brown, Abdalhamid from Haverford College in Pennsylvania and Ahmad from Trinity University. .via REUTERS
Vermont Gov. Phil Scott also said he has given the state’s “full support” to authorities in Burlington, calling the shooting “a tragedy.”
“I urge Vermonters to come together to help the community heal and not allow this incident to incite further hate or division,” Scott said. “We must unite in these difficult times. “It is the only way to end the violence we are seeing.”
The relatives of the three victims issued their own statement, which was published in X by the Institute for Understanding the Middle East.
“As parents, we are devastated by the horrible news that our children were attacked and shot in Burlington,” the post read. “We call on authorities to conduct a thorough investigation, including treating this as a hate crime.
“We will not be comfortable until the shooter is brought to justice. “We need to make sure our children are protected and this heinous crime is not repeated.”
Hisham Awartani, one of the injured students, is recovering from his injuries. Instagram/Hisham Awartani
The three men were walking on North Prospect Street around 6:30 p.m. when they were shot, according to WPTZ-TV News.
Police said the gunman fired at least four bullets before fleeing.
The victims were rushed to the University of Vermont Medical Center, where two were in stable condition and the third in serious condition, while the shooter remains at large.
WPTZ did not identify the victims as Palestinians, but Zomlot and Arab-American media and organizations said they were and denounced the incident as a targeted attack against Palestinians as the war between Israel and Hamas continues.
“After reviewing the initial information provided, we have reason to believe that this shooting occurred because the victims are Arabs,” the ADC said.
Tahseen Ali (left) and Kenan Abdalhamid were among three Palestinian students shot in Vermont on Saturday. Instagram/Hisham Awartani
He did not identify any of the victims as Yale students, despite Zomlot’s post on X.
The ADC said the students were speaking Arabic when the gunman shouted at them and opened fire.
“We are praying for a full recovery for the victims and will be ready to support the families in any way necessary,” ADC national executive director Abed Ayoub said in a statement on Sunday.
“The rise in anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian sentiment we are experiencing is unprecedented, and this is another example of that hatred turning violent,” Ayoub added.
The October 7 sneak terrorist attack against Israel by Palestinian Hamas terrorists (and the subsequent Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip) has sparked an outbreak of anti-Semitic and occasionally anti-Arab violence in the United States.
American college campuses in particular have become hotbeds of unrest, including Ivy League schools.
On Saturday, hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters flooded Columbus Circle in Manhattan, at one point dragging a burning Israeli flag down the street as they denounced the Jewish state.
Arab Americans denounced the shooting of three Palestinian students in Vermont as an alleged hate crime. Instagram/@palmun.xiii
Last week, a Queens public school teacher was forced to lock herself in a classroom while a mob of pro-Palestinian students chased her over a pro-Israel Facebook post, an incident that New York Mayor Eric Adams , described it as a “vile example of anti-Semitism.” .”
Last month, a Brooklyn man was also allegedly beaten by a group of pro-Israel men after shouting, “Free Palestine!” according to a report from WPIX-TV News.
The Burlington Police Department in Vermont did not immediately respond to a Post request for comment on Saturday’s shooting.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn