Emir Balat and Ibrahim Kayumi are accused of trying to detonate bombs at an anti-Islam rally

A police officer with a bomb disposal robot investigates a car in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, after a homemade explosive thrown near anti-Muslim protesters failed to detonate, in New York. Photo / Charly Triballeau, AFP

Two young men accused of trying to detonate explosive devices during a protest outside the home of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Sunday have been charged with attempting to support a foreign terrorist group and using a weapon of mass destruction, United States federal prosecutors announced today.

Officials said Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, travelled to New York from Pennsylvania and tried to detonate two devices near protesters gathered for an anti-Islam rally near Gracie Mansion, the mayoral residence, where Mamdani lives with his wife, Rama Duwaji.

According to a complaint filed in New York federal court and unsealed today, the suspects made multiple references to Isis.

The devices contained an explosive material that has been used in multiple terrorist attacks over the last decade, officials and the complaint said.

Balat said that he and Kayumi wanted to “carry out an attack bigger than the Boston Marathon bombing”, according to the complaint.

Mamdani and Duwaji were not home at the time of the protest, and the devices did not explode. No one was injured.

It was unclear whether Balat and Kayumi had retained lawyers. Attempts to reach their family members were unsuccessful.

A third device and other materials were found yesterday inside a car associated with the men, officials said.

New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said today that testing on one of the explosives revealed it was made with materials that could have caused serious injury or death.

The devices were found after a clash between anti-Islam protesters, led by right-wing provocateur Jake Lang, and counter-protesters.

The incident underscores political tensions in New York and an increase in political violence nationwide.

Mamdani, who is Muslim, quickly became the focus of Islamophobic rhetoric when he was elected mayor of the nation’s biggest city in November.

During the mayoral race, he faced questions and criticism over his religion from his political opponents and commentators.

Today, during his first public remarks about the incident, Mamdani called the anti-Muslim rally a “vile protest rooted in white supremacy” but said he would “not waver in my belief that it should be allowed to happen”.

While most counter-protesters were peaceful, he said, the two suspects tried to rouse the demonstrators to become more violent.

“New York City will never tolerate violence, whether from protests or counter-protests,” he said in a news conference outside Gracie Mansion.

The protest was planned more than a week in advance and spearheaded by Lang, who was charged with beating police officers with a baseball bat during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol and was later pardoned.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said: 'New York City will never tolerate violence, whether from protests or counterprotests'. Photo / Getty Images

Lang has planned similar rallies across the country, including in Minneapolis, where a recent demonstration grew violent.

In posts to promote his rally, Lang said supporters could stand up against the “Muslim takeover” of New York and “Stop NYC public Muslim prayer”, and he promised to bring “hundreds” of pig heads to the demonstration outside Gracie Mansion.

New York law enforcement agencies were aware of the protest and plans for a counter-protest, officials said in today’s news conference where they announced charges.

The city, Tisch said, has also been in a “heightened state of alert” since the US and Israel began a war in Iran last month.

Mamdani and his team also knew about the protest ahead of time, the Mayor said. By the time the protest started, he and his wife were at the New York Sign Museum in Brooklyn.

Fewer than two dozen people gathered alongside Lang during the protest, according to police. About 125 people showed up to counter-protest, a demonstration they called “Run the Nazis out of NYC”, police said. Tensions between the two groups began to escalate.

A Lang supporter pepper-sprayed a counter-protester, Tisch said. That person was arrested.

Twenty minutes later, Balat, the 18-year-old suspect, allegedly lit and threw a device towards the protest area. Witnesses saw smoke and flames while it was in the air, Tisch said.

The device landed on a crossing and extinguished itself. Balat then sprinted, grabbed a second device from Kayumi and dropped it as he ran again, according to police and the complaint.

Videos of the incident were shared online by people at the protest. The federal complaint includes two photos appearing to show Balat holding one of the homemade devices and raising his arm to throw it.

It also includes a third photo allegedly showing the handoff of the second device between Balat and Kayumi, alongside other images depicting the contents of one of the explosives.

The day ended in six arrests related to the incident, Tisch said, including the person accused of using pepper spray and three others arrested on counts of disorderly conduct and obstructing traffic.

As officers swept the area, police said, they found the third device inside a vehicle and briefly evacuated residents in the surrounding area before they extracted it from the car. The devices have been sent to a federal lab for more testing.

Federal authorities searched the homes of both men in Pennsylvania, Tisch said. They were both arrested about one hour after they arrived in New York.

Sign up to Herald Premium Editor’s Picks, delivered straight to your inbox every Friday. Editor-in-Chief Murray Kirkness picks the week’s best features, interviews and investigations. Sign up for Herald Premium here.