Chaos outside Mamdani’s home brings terror charges for ‘IS-inspired’ teens – and host of questions | New York

Eearly Monday afternoon, two teenagers dressed in white plastic jumpsuits were escorted into a federal courtroom in Manhattan. Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi, chained and handcuffed, quietly took their places at the defense table.

Without the metal restraints and prison garb, 18-year-old Balat and 19-year-old Kayumi could have been many young men who carry themselves with an aura of discomfort about their place in America.

Balat, a high school student, and Kayumi, a recent graduate, are accused Islamic State supporters who allegedly traveled from suburban Philadelphia to New York on Saturday with the intention of detonating explosives in front of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s home.

Their court appearance marked an apparent inflection point at a time of heightened crisis in the United States. Balat and Kayumi reportedly confessed to being inspired by ISIS, as the United States launched a bombing campaign against Iran to support Israel, which is also attacking Lebanon.

The alleged attempted attack also took place against the backdrop of a Christian nationalist protest against Mamdani, New York’s first Muslim mayor, amid growing Islamophobia. This incident also took place as Mamdani has become a symbol of opposition to Donald Trump and his far-right Maga movement.

Despite the tensions, there was no immediate reason to believe the planned gathering could escalate into potentially deadly chaos.

Around noon on March 7, far-right provocateur Jake Lang and 20 henchmen went to Mamdani’s residence, Gracie Mansion. Lang and his supporters planned to protest at a rally titled “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City.” He brought a goat.

That Lang, a pardoned Jan. 6 rioter with a predilection for military attire, planned to demonstrate outside Gracie Mansion was no surprise in this political climate. Mamdani faced significant Islamophobia during his political rise. Trump’s war against Iran has further increased tensions. And several right-wing members of Congress recently posted blatantly anti-Muslim missives on X.

A counter-protest – “Drive the Nazis out of New York” – drew 100 demonstrators to Gracie Mansion in a scene described as “surreal” by the New York Times. Hot dogs and eggs were reportedly thrown and several counter-protesters were hit with pepper spray. Several participants even got into fights.

Around 12:15 p.m., the disorder almost became deadly.

Federal authorities say Balat lit and threw an “explosive device” toward the area where protesters were gathered. Balat then walked around the block and allegedly collected a second device from Ibrahim Kayumi. Balat allegedly lit the second explosive and “dropped” it near several New York police officers, then broke through a barricade. Balat was then “approached and arrested” by police, as was Kayumi, authorities said.

Each device was the size of a jar that could hold spaghetti sauce or homemade jam. Nuts and bolts were attached to the exterior. One device contained an explosive called TATP. The chemical, “colloquially known as ‘the mother of Satan'” because of its sensitivity to shock and heat, “has been used in multiple terrorist attacks over the past decade,” authorities said.

Almost immediately after their arrest, even more disturbing details emerged about an incident that could easily have turned deadly.

While on his way to the police station, Balat, according to a criminal complaint filed in Manhattan federal court, said: “It’s not a religion that stands when people talk about the blessed name of the prophet… We act! We act! If I didn’t do it, someone else will come and do it.”

At the police station, Balat asked for a piece of paper. “All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds! I pledge my allegiance [sic] to the Islamic State. Die in your rage, you [sic] kuffar! Emir B,” he reportedly wrote.

Police asked Balat if he knew about the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. Was that what he was trying to accomplish? “No, it’s even more serious. There were only three deaths,” Balat reportedly said.

Kayumi also expressed support for the Islamic State, authorities said. As he was being put into a police vehicle, someone in the crowd shouted: Why did you do that?

“ISIS,” he said, according to the criminal complaint.

The teens’ alleged mention of ISIS is consistent with other recent terrorist attacks that have left U.S. communities reeling and fearful of further radicalization as Trump’s bombing of Iran unfolds.

A man rammed his vehicle into a Michigan synagogue Thursday in what the FBI considers a “targeted act of violence against the Jewish community.” The man, a naturalized U.S. citizen, lost four family members in a recent Israeli airstrike in Lebanon. He was killed by security guards before injuring synagogue staff and 140 schoolchildren.

A gunman who killed one person and injured two others Thursday at Old Dominion University in Virginia had ties to terrorism. Mohamed Jalloh, a former member of the Army National Guard, pleaded guilty in 2016 to attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State.

Authorities are also investigating the March 1 mass shooting in Austin, which left three people dead and 14 injured, as a potential act of terrorism. The shooter, a Senegalese national who was naturalized in the United States, wore a hoodie that read “Property of Allah.” The police, who believe he acted alone, killed him on the spot.

Mamdani’s statement on the New York incident denounced the violence. It read: “Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang staged a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism. Such hatred has no place in New York. It is an affront to the values ​​of our city and the unity that defines who we are.”

Mamdani added: “What followed was even more disturbing. Violence during a protest is never acceptable. The attempt to use an explosive device and harm others is not only criminal, it is reprehensible and the antithesis of who we are.”

Conservatives, like Greg Kelly, the son of former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly, took issue with Mamdani’s language.

“Imagine this: A bomb goes off in New York, planted by ISIS-inspired terrorists. The mayor names white supremacy as the problem; white supremacy – if only we could get rid of these white supremacists,” he said.

Balat and Kayumi’s path to becoming would-be suicide bombers remains unclear.

Balat’s father, originally from Türkiye, was granted asylum in the United States 18 years ago and later obtained citizenship. Court documents cited by the Associated Press say he describes himself as a painter with three children.

Kayumi’s parents, who the New York Times reported became U.S. citizens after emigrating from Afghanistan, are entrepreneurs, owning and working at several Popeyes fried chicken restaurants, AP said.

Two of Balat’s former classmates told Gothamist that he kept to himself most of the time. For a time, Balat even had a sneaker reselling business.

Their attitude in court Monday also did little to explain their alleged descent into attempted terrorism.

At approximately 1:15 p.m., they were escorted into the courtroom in Tyvek-type suits. They were held by chains as well as handcuffs that appeared to have a slight red edge.

They did not speak as they entered the courtroom. Balat, with his disheveled curls, appeared to have a small scab or two on his right elbow. Kayumi, with a close-cropped haircut, had a beard.

Judge Gary Stein reviewed the charges against them: attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization; use of a weapon of mass destruction; transport of explosive materials; interstate transportation and receipt of explosives; and illegal possession of destructive devices. If convicted, they face decades in federal prison.

Balat’s lawyer, Mehdi Essmidi, spoke to reporters after his court appearance. Esmidi repeatedly emphasized his client’s young age and said he believed the men did not know each other.

“I think he’s 18 and he has no idea what he’s doing,” Essmidi said. He described Balat as a “good student,” barely credited with graduating.

Balat had “complex things” in his life. His family were “good, hard-working, honest people who had absolutely no idea.”

Balat and Kayumi’s families seemed to have achieved the American dream. Balat’s parents lived in a $653,000, four-bedroom, 3,200-square-foot home; Kayumi’s family lived in a six-bedroom home worth $2.24 million, according to the New York Daily News.

Kayumi’s lawyer did not respond to a request for comment, including a request for a statement from her family.

According to the criminal complaint, Kayumi’s mother filed a missing person’s report Saturday. Kayumi’s father, Khayer Kayumi, told The New York Times that the family was scared when he didn’t return home.

“If he’s going to be five minutes late, he calls,” he said. “Maybe he had committed suicide…We didn’t know what was happening.”