‘Bias-Motivated’ Stabbing of Palestinian-American Was a Hate Crime, Police Say

The stabbing of a Palestinian-American man in Austin, Texas after a pro-Palestinian protest last weekend was a hate crime, according to local police.

Zacharia Doar, 23, was sitting in his car while waiting to leave a statewide protest on Feb. 4 at the Texas Capitol with three other young Muslims when a white man on a bicycle, identified as Bert James Baker, rode up to them, attempted to tear a Palestinian keffiyeh off their car, and screamed racial slurs at the passengers, police said. Baker then allegedly slammed open the car door, ripping Doar out of the passenger seat and onto the ground where he began attacking him before ultimately stabbing him in the back, narrowly missing his heart.

Doar’s father told the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) that the victim was rushed to the hospital where he underwent a successful surgery, and now faces a long recovery. According to police, Baker was arrested on Sunday night and charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

Read more at The Daily Beast.