THE shirtless flamethrowing and firebomb “terrorist” Mohamed Sabry Soliman has been described as an “illegal alien” by a White House official.
The Egyptian national, 45, illegally overstayed his visa before being issued a new work permit in the US, federal officials said.
Around 30 individuals gathered peacefully for a “Run for Their Lives” march, advocating for the freedom of all Israeli hostages currently 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.
He was named as 45-year-old Mohamed Sabry Soliman.
The alleged attacker 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 Fox News, Soliman entered the United States in August 2022 using a non-immigrant visa and was allowed to stay until February 2023, but he did not depart as expected.
In September 2022, he submitted a request to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, which subsequently approved his work authorization in March 2023, allowing him to work legally until March of the current 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.”
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 reportedly 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 CNN 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 of various kinds 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 as quickly as they could once being alerted of the carnage at around 1.26pm local time on Sunday.
Mass evacuations were quickly ordered near to 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.
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.
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.
