A group of masked men in Palestinian kaffiyehs was caught on video physically attacking Jewish diners in Los Angeles on Tuesday night in what police say could be an antisemitic hate crime.
According to CBSLA, witnesses said the pro-Palestinian mob attacked a group of Jewish men while they were eating at a restaurant just before 10 p.m. outside Sushi Fumi on the 300 block of North La Cienega Boulevard.
Video of the attack showed the pro-Palestinians exit a vehicle and attack the Jewish group while shouting anti-Semitic slurs. Authorities are investigating whether the incident was a Jewish hate crime.
“Jews are being attacked in Los Angeles by Palestinians who seek them out and beat them up! If you wonder what does the words radical Islamists mean? THIS IS IT! If you still wonder if this whole war is anti-Zionism or antisemitism, this is your answer…” one Twitter user wrote, sharing video of the brawl.
One of the non-Jewish diners told the local news station that the occupants of several cars displaying pro-Palestinian flags started throwing bottles at him and his group.
“I was speaking to one guy, ‘Relax, why are they doing that.’ Just protest peacefully,” the man said before he was physically attacked while trying to defend the group, adding that they attackers were using anti-Jewish slurs.
“It was a hate crime,” he said. “It was prepared, they came to fight with Jewish people.”
Another witness who asked not to be identified described one man who yelled anti-Semitic profanity, including “dirty Jew.”
“Somebody in one of the cars driving by started throwing glass bottles or glass cups at the tables and they shattered everywhere,” she said. “A bunch of the cars stopped and maybe 30 of the men in the cars got out, started running towards the tables and asking indiscriminately, ‘Who’s Jewish.’”
No serious injuries were reported, but five victims were either punched or hurt by broken glass.
Authorities are searching for three suspects, described as white men wearing all black, and the Anti-Defamation League of Los Angeles is offering a reward of $5,000 for any information on the attackers.
Police are also investigating a separate incident in which security footage appears to show an Orthodox Jewish man being pursued by a pro-Palestinian caravan.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti condemned the uptick in attacks on Jewish residents, saying, “L.A. is a city of belonging, not of hate. There is simply no place for anti-Semitism, discrimination, or prejudice of any kind in Los Angeles. And we will never tolerate bigotry and violence in our communities.”
