Arrest after man ‘storms bimah’ in attack during Shabbat service at Manhattan synagogue

The man was charged with four counts of hate-crime assault, two counts of assault, criminal mischief as a hate crime, criminal mischief, disrupting a religious service, criminal trespass as a hate crime, two counts of aggravated harassment and two counts of harassment.

Central Synagogue, a Reform congregation, stated that it was grateful to the many who "have reached out in support after the disturbing events during services.

"Tonight at Shabbat services, a disturbed man stormed our bimah," or dais, and "knocked over our Shabbat candles, screamed obscenities and assaulted a congregant," the synagogue said. "In the face of this antisemitic hate, our security director heroically restrained and escorted the man out."

The synagogue added that the cantor and musicians "did not let this stop the music."

"Our rabbis reignited the candles, helped us breathe and found the words to respond to the moment in real time," it said. "Our congregation refused to let hate extinguish our Shabbat light."

'Place of worship should never be a crime scene'

Jessica Tisch, commissioner of the NYPD, said that a sergeant who was working as "a paid detail at the synagogue" took the suspect into custody.

"I have spoken with the rabbi of the synagogue, and I’m relieved that no one was seriously injured," she stated on Friday night. "Those who were hurt were evaluated at the scene and are doing well. There are no known additional threats at this time, and additional NYPD resources have been deployed to the synagogue.

"I understand the sanctity of this space and its meaning for congregants," added Tisch, who is Jewish. "Central Synagogue is where I grew up. In joy and in sorrow, it has always been a place of comfort and peace. What happened there tonight is deeply painful. A place of worship should never be a crime scene."

Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York City and an outspoken critic of Israel, said he was "horrified."

"I can only imagine the pain and fear an attack like this, during Shabbat services, causes for the congregation and for Jewish New Yorkers across our city," the mayor said. 

Anti-Jewish hate crimes surged 182 per cent in Mamdani's first month in office compared the previous year.

Julie Menin, speaker of the City Council, stated that she was "deeply disturbed" by the attack.

"Incidents like this are painful and traumatising for so many, and only deepen the fear many are already feeling," she stated. "Every New Yorker has the right to worship in peace and safety."

On Saturday morning, Menin issued a more personal statement.

"From 73 swastikas defacing a Brooklyn playground to a Jewish man stabbed after leaving Tisha B’Av services last month, horrifying acts of antisemitism are soaring in our city," she wrote. "From Hebrew school to my father’s memorial service, Central Synagogue is where my family and thousands of others worship. It is our sanctuary and a place of solace.

"Armed guards stand outside on the High Holidays, as we have to explain to our children why they are there. Now, a congregant was assaulted during Shabbat services in an incident that has resulted in hate crime charges," she said.

"When my mother and grandmother came to New York City after surviving the Holocaust, they were welcomed with open arms. What is happening now in our city is unrecognisable and horrifying."

She added that "we will not allow hate to divide us or fear to silence us" and "will continue fighting for a city where every New Yorker can live safely and proudly, no matter their faith."

Mark Treyger, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, stated that the attack "is not merely disturbing, but it is an assault on the fundamental right of every New Yorker to worship in peace and without fear."

"Disrupting Shabbat services, assaulting congregants and security personnel, and desecrating the sanctity of a synagogue is reprehensible, particularly at a moment when antisemitism and threats against Jewish New Yorkers have reached alarming levels," he stated.

On Saturday morning, he also issued a second statement, in which he said that his "deeply grateful" to Tisch and the NYPD.

"Security is necessary, particularly with the High Holidays and UN General Assembly approaching, but more armed guards cannot become our sole answer to more hate," he wrote. "There is something fundamentally wrong with a society in which people need to pass heavily armed security simply to enter a synagogue and pray. That is not normal. We must never accept it as normal.

"Jewish institutions already devote extraordinary resources to security, and New York remains a major recipient of federal non-profit security funding precisely because the threat is so serious, but the measure of our success cannot be how many guards we can place outside a house of worship," he wrote. "It must be whether people can enter one without fear."

"This is a five-alarm emergency," he added. "Security can protect a door. Leadership must address why that door needs so much protection in the first place."

Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) stated that "just as troubling as the violence itself is the political climate that emboldens it.

"American politics has become so obsessively antagonistic toward 'Zionists' that even a synagogue is seen as fair game for disruption and desecration. No Jewish space is considered sacred enough to be left untouched," said Torres, who is one of the most vocal supporters of Israel in Congress. "Antisemitism has risen to historic highs in America’s most Jewish city, with more hate crimes against Jews than against all other communities combined."

"Instead of cooling tensions, both the far left and the far right keep pouring gasoline on the fires of hate, fear and blame," he said.