(RNS) — The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim advocacy group, urged Texas and federal authorities to press hate crime charges against a man accused of attacking a group of young Muslims after a pro-Palestinian protest held in Austin last weekend.Three of the four men attacked were Palestinian American, including 23-year-old Zacharia Doar, who was stabbed in the chest and severely injured. Doar is recovering at the hospital after a successful surgery, according to his father.
“This hate that is going around needs to stop,” said his father, Nizar Doar, during a news conference Tuesday (Feb. 6) at Austin’s City Hall.
On Sunday evening, the group was attacked while driving home from the Texas state Capitol, where they had participated in a protest by the Austin for Palestine Coalition, demanding a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.
The four young men were in a truck with a kaffiyeh reading “Free Palestine” tied to a flagpole. The checkered scarf is a headdress of Bedouin origin and became a symbol of Palestinian nationalism in the 1960s, worn by Palestinian leaders such as Yasser Arafat. Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, the scarf has been a mainstay at cease-fire protests to express solidarity with Palestinians.
An attacker, identified by authorities as Bert James Baker, approached the vehicle at the corner of Nueces and West 26th streets, in West Campus, a neighborhood close to the University …
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“This hate that is going around needs to stop,” said his father, Nizar Doar, during a news conference Tuesday (Feb. 6) at Austin’s City Hall.
On Sunday evening, the group was attacked while driving home from the Texas state Capitol, where they had participated in a protest by the Austin for Palestine Coalition, demanding a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war.
The four young men were in a truck with a kaffiyeh reading “Free Palestine” tied to a flagpole. The checkered scarf is a headdress of Bedouin origin and became a symbol of Palestinian nationalism in the 1960s, worn by Palestinian leaders such as Yasser Arafat. Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, the scarf has been a mainstay at cease-fire protests to express solidarity with Palestinians.
An attacker, identified by authorities as Bert James Baker, approached the vehicle at the corner of Nueces and West 26th streets, in West Campus, a neighborhood close to the University …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]