Three Palestinian men shot, injured in apparent hate crime in US’s Vermont

Three Palestinian men in the United States were shot and injured on Saturday in the state of Vermont, The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee reported on Sunday.

The victims, identified as college students Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Ali and Kenan Abdulhamid, were shot last night while on their way to a family dinner, DNC said.

Witnesses said the three men were wearing Kuffiyeh, a symbol of Palestinian identity and resistance, and speaking Arabic when a man shouted at them before opening fire, hitting all three.

The National Executive Director of ADC Abed Ayoub expressed deep concern over the incident, stating, “We are praying for a full recovery of the victims and will support the families in any way that is needed. Given the information collected and provided, it is clear that hate was a motivating factor in this shooting.”

ADC is calling on law enforcement in Vermont to investigate the shooting as a hate crime. Additionally, the organization has reached out to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), urging an immediate hate crimes investigation.

“The surge in anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian sentiment we are experiencing is unprecedented, and this is another example of that hate turning violent,” Ayoub added.

Palestinian Ambassador to the UK Husam Zomlot wrote on X, formely Twitter, condemning the shooting and drewing attention to a similar hate crime six weeks ago, where a 6-year-old Palestinian child was stabbed to death in Illinois.

“Six weeks ago, a 6-year-old Palestinian child was stabbed 26 times in a hate crime in Illinois. The hate crimes against Palestinians must stop. Palestinians everywhere need protection,” urged Zomlot.

The Palestinian foreign ministry on Sunday condemned the shooting of the three Palestinian students who they said had sustained “severe and moderate injuries” during the shooting.

The foreign ministry called on US authorities to quickly hold those responsible for the shooting to account.