New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said police informed him on March 27 of an alleged plot to firebomb the home of Nerdeen Kiswani, a co-founder of the anti-Israel activist group Within Our Lifetime.
Federal authorities charged Alexander Heifler, 26, of Hoboken, N.J., a day earlier with making and possessing destructive devices after he allegedly assembled Molotov cocktails and discussed plans to attack Kiswani’s home, according to a criminal complaint. Authorities say the plot was disrupted following an undercover operation by the New York City Police Department.
Asked at a press conference on Monday when he was informed of the alleged plot and about Kiswani’s criticism that he has “betrayed the pro-Palestinian cause since being elected,” Mamdani said, “I was informed by the NYPD of this attempted plot on Friday.”
“I think any New Yorker is—they have the right to critique,” he said. “And also, we need to protect them from any threat of political violence. That is the truth for Nerdeen and for anyone who calls this city home.”
In an initial statement Friday, Mamdani described Heifler as “an alleged member of the Jewish Defense League,” which the FBI has designated a violent extremist organization, and claimed “the defendant allegedly planned to flee to Israel following the attack.”
He later issued a revised statement, referring instead to an “offshoot” of the group and saying the suspect “reportedly” planned to flee the country.
Kiswani, a Palestinian-American who was born in Jordan and grew up in Brooklyn, is a frequent organizer of pro-Palestinian protests in New York. She wrote on social media on March 27 that the FBI told her of “a plot against my life.”
