Attacks
Bazrouk was arrested at three separate protests in Manhattan over approximately nine months, during which he assaulted Jewish protesters who were wearing religious attire or carrying Israeli flags. [2] [3]
In April 2024, Bazrouk, wearing a Hamas headband, scuffled with pro-Israel demonstrators outside the New York Stock Exchange. During his arrest and while being escorted to a police vehicle, he kicked a Jewish college student in the stomach. In December 2024, near Columbia University, Bazrouk took an Israeli flag from two Jewish brothers, calling them "Nazis". When the brothers pursued him to retrieve the flag, Bazrouk struck one of them in the face. According to the NYPD, the brothers started the verbal dispute. [4] [5] The December attack was condemned by New York Governor Kathy Hochul. [5]
In January 2025, at another protest, Bazrouk jostled with a Jewish counter-protester. After being pushed away, he responded by punching the man in the nose. [4]
According to court filings and Bazrouk's plea, all of the victims were identifiable as Jewish, either through religious attire, symbols such as Stars of David, Israeli flags, or participation in Jewish songs. Two of the victims were students at Columbia University. Investigators reported that Bazrouk's phone contained text messages in which he referred to himself as a "Jew hater" and called on "Allah" to "get us rid of [Jews]." Prosecutors cited these messages, along with his social media posts supporting Hamas, as evidence of an antisemitic motive [4] Bazrouk told the court he carried out the attacks "to express my outrage over Israel's widespread killing and displacement of Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip". [4]
Legal
On May 7, 2025, Bazrouk was charged with three federal hate crimes. [2] In June pleaded guilty to targeting victims for their Jewish or Israeli identity. [6] As part of his plea agreement, he forfeited $750,000 in cash to authorities; the source of the funds was not disclosed. [4]
Before his sentencing, Bazrouk served six months at the Metropolitan Detention Center. [1] On October 23, 2025, he was sentenced to 17 months in federal prison. [6]
Reception
Bazrouk's prosecution came amid heightened scrutiny of pro-Palestinian demonstrations, which the Trump administration accused of antisemitism. [2] According to Reuters, Bazrouk's case was the first time the U.S. Department of Justice brought federal hate-crime charges related to the Columbia University protests. [7]
Bazrouk's case became a cause célèbre [4] [6] among anti-Israel activist groups in the United States. Organizations including Students for Justice in Palestine, Palestinian Youth Movement, Within Our Lifetime, Pal-Awda, and Columbia University Apartheid Divest publicly expressed support for Bazrouk. Ahead of his sentencing, these groups encouraged supporters to send letters requesting leniency or to contribute to Bazrouk's commissary. [4] More than 11,000 people signed a letter asking Richard Berman to allow Bazrouk to complete his sentence under supervised release rather than serve additional prison time. [1] After his sentencing, the Workers World newspaper called for solidarity with Bazrouk and others it called political prisoners. [8] Bazrouk also received support from activist Isra Hirsi, the daughter of U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar. [9]
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