Families call for hate crime investigation after 3 Palestinian students shot in Vermont

A suspect was arrested Sunday in the shooting of three Palestinian students attending college in Vermont, which advocacy groups believe was a hate crime.

Burlington police arrested 48-year-old Jason Eaton in the shooting, according to The Washington Post. A judge granted a search warrant for Eaton’s residence after evidence “gave investigators and prosecutors probable cause to believe that Mr. Eaton perpetrated the shooting,” police said. The shooting allegedly took place in front of Eaton’s apartment building, according to The Daily Beast.

Eaton is expected to be arraigned Monday and faces three counts of aggravated assault, according to the report.

Police have not specified a motive but said it is possible the students were targeted because they are Arab, according to the Daily Beast. They were reportedly in town to celebrate Thanksgiving with one of the men’s relatives.

Police said Sunday that a “white male with a handgun” approached the three friends and shot them at least four times “without speaking” before fleeing on foot.

“All three victims were struck, two in their torsos and one in the lower extremities,” the Burlington Police Department said in a statement, adding that they remain hospitalized and one has very serious injuries.

The victims’ parents identified the students as Haverford College junior Kinnan Abdalhamid, Brown University student Hisham Awartani, and Trinity College student Tahseen Ahmed. Police said two of the students are U.S. citizens and one is a legal U.S. resident. The West Bank high school Ramallah Friends said that all three had attended school there before enrolling in American universities, according to the Post.

“As parents, we are devastated by the horrific news that our children were targeted and shot in Burlington,” the parents said in a statement, according to the Post. “We call on law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation, including treating this as a hate crime. … No family should ever have to endure this pain and agony. Our children are dedicated students who deserve to be able to focus on their studies and building their futures.”

The Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee said the group believes the “shooting occurred because the victims are Arab,” noting that they were wearing a Kuffiyeh and speaking Arabic.

Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said in a statement on Sunday that police are investigating whether the attack was “hate-motivated.”

“In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate-motivated crime. And I have already been in touch with federal investigatory and prosecutorial partners to prepare for that if it’s proven,” Murad said. “The fact is that we don’t yet know as much as we want to right now,” he added. “But I urge the public to avoid making conclusions based on statements from uninvolved parties who know even less.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a statement on Sunday offering a $10,000 reward for information about the shooting.

The FBI said Monday that it “continues to actively investigate” the shooting and “has deployed numerous technical, forensic and investigative resources in support of the investigation.”

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“That there is an indication this shooting could have been motivated by hate is chilling, and this possibility is being prioritized in the BPD’s investigation,” Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger said in a statement.

The shooting comes amid growing concerns about threats and violence against Arab Americans amid the Israel-Hamas war. In October, 6-year-old Illinois boy Wadea Al-Fayoume was killed and his mother was stabbed 12 times in an attack allegedly carried out by their landlord days after the October 7 Hamas massacre in Israel.

“It is shocking and deeply upsetting that three young Palestinians were shot here in Burlington, VT,” Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said in a statement. “Hate has no place here, or anywhere. I look forward to a full investigation. My thoughts are with them and their families.”