Burlington, Vermont, police are actively searching for a white suspect following the shooting of three 20-year-old men of Palestinian descent on Saturday.
The victims, who were visiting a relative’s home for Thanksgiving on Prospect Street, were confronted by an armed white man around 6:30 p.m. According to reports, the assailant, without uttering a word, discharged at least four rounds.
Two of the victims sustained gunshot wounds to the torso, with the third man being shot in the lower extremities.
While two are in stable condition, the third victim suffered more severe injuries. Two of the victims, identified as U.S. citizens, were wearing keffiyehs, symbols of Palestinian solidarity.
The suspect is believed to have fled on foot, and as of now, the motive remains unknown. Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad cautioned against jumping to conclusions and emphasized the ongoing investigation.
The victims, identified as Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid, and Tahseen Ahmed, are students at Brown University, Haverford College, and Trinity College, respectively.
Parents of the victims issued a joint statement expressing devastation and calling for a thorough investigation, urging law enforcement to treat it as a hate crime.
Haverford College’s president and dean also released a statement, awaiting information on whether the incident will be pursued as a hate crime.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee expressed concern, stating that the shooting appears motivated by hate. President Biden has been briefed on the incident, and Senator Bernie Sanders condemned the act on social media.
The shooting follows the stabbing death of a 6-year-old Palestinian boy in the Chicago area a month earlier. The Council on American-Islamic Relations noted an “unprecedented surge” in anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bias incidents since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Source: motherjones.com
