The Israel-Hamas conflict taking place in Gaza has caused tens of thousands of deaths in a short time period. The conflict has caused many kidnappings and hostage situations for innocent people. Across the world, conflicting views have led to hatred of people on both sides of the war, which has led to protests and campaigns to slow the war effort. Violent outbursts against people, primarily Palestinian people, have begun to break out. One of the first hate crimes against Palestinian people due to the Israel-Hamas war happened in the United States.
According to Al Jazeera, three students, identified as Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid and Tahseen Ahmed, were shot just outside of the University of Vermont campus after walking home from a birthday party. The students come from different universities across the northeastern United States, and they all attended primary and high school together. The shooting took place around 6:30 p.m., with all three students being shot multiple times. Luckily, the students were rushed to the local hospital in time and survived the attack. Awartani was shot in the back, and is expected to lose all mobility of his legs. Abdalhamid sustained minor injuries, and was released from the hospital after only a couple days. Ahmed was shot in the chest and remains in the hospital with Awartani.
Authorities have arrested and charged a suspect for the attack. CBS News wrote that local authorities detained 48-year-old Jason Eaton. Eaton was arrested around 3 p.m. the next day. These authorities, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), have launched an investigation into a possible motive to why the crime took place. Eaton was charged with three counts of attempted murder in the second degree. Eaton pleaded not guilty to his crimes.
Investigators and witnesses alike believe that this event is a hate crime. The BBC states that witnesses recounted the men speaking Arabic to each other. Two of the men were wearing keffiyeh, which is a traditional scarf, when the attack took place. All three of the men spent a portion of their lives living in Palestine before becoming citizens of the United States. All these factors are leading contributors to the attack. Federal authorities also believe that this attack was related to the victims’ descent, but urge the public not to jump to a conclusion on the situation. This comes as another presumed hate attack against innocent Palestinians in the United States.
Hate crimes like this cause harm to not only the victims of the attacks, but also their families, friends, and fellow compatriots. While the suspect has been arrested, there remains substantial damage that can’t be undone.
