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Mamdani’s NYC Missed the Warning Signs; Days Later, Former Trump Adviser’s Mom Was Dead
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AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File
According to data published by the New York City Police Department (NYPD), anti-Jewish hate crimes are climbing at an alarming rate across New York City. Through July of this year, attacks targeting Jews were up nearly nine percent over the same period as last year, accounting for around 57 percent of all confirmed hate crimes in the city.
Presiding over this ugly trend, of course, is Zohran Mamdani, who spent years savaging Israel and bashing police. Before becoming mayor, Mamdani railed that the NYPD was a “racist” and “rogue” agency and backed the efforts by some on the Left to defund the police.
And his harsh rhetoric against Israel and accusations of a “genocide” have become so concerning that some of the city’s Jewish leaders had to confront him this week about his words possibly helping to fuel the increasingly hostile environment for Jewish New Yorkers.
A horrifying case out of Queens involving a bagel shop and a Jewish mom walking home from dinner brings the NYPD stats to life in brutal detail.
According to prosecutors, 22-year-old Dawood Faisal targeted Bagels & Co. – a kosher restaurant that proudly displays Israeli flags – two times in May. On May 15, Faisal allegedly knocked over nine metal plant stands outside the restaurant, spilling dirt and plants across the sidewalk, then picking up handfuls of dirt and throwing them at the storefront.
In the early morning hours of May 23, Faisal allegedly pushed and kicked over 11 plant stands, dumped their contents onto the sidewalk, and tried to topple a large clay pot. When that didn’t work, authorities say he ripped the plants out of the pot and the surrounding containers.
A prosecutor later said Faisal had “repeatedly targeted a Jewish-owned business” in a “vile act of antisemitism.”
On May 25, Faisal was behind the wheel of a Toyota Prius and was allegedly barreling through Queens at dangerous speeds when he caused a violent crash that sent another vehicle into Cara Trager, 71, and her husband as they walked home from dinner.
Cara suffered catastrophic head injuries and died in the hospital four days later. Her husband survived the horror.
Prosecutors say Faisal tried to flee the scene, but was detained by witnesses to the crash. He was later charged with manslaughter and hate crimes related to the vandalism; he has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Cara Trager’s family is now left wondering whether this tragedy could have been prevented. (There’s a sad footnote to this story: Cara’s son, Eric, worked as a Middle East advisor to President Trump during 2025.)
That question certainly deserves an answer, especially in a city where anti-Jewish hate crimes are once again on the rise. Jewish New Yorkers shouldn’t have to wonder whether attacks on businesses in their community will be shrugged off and only acted on when something worse happens.
Mamdani can keep distancing himself from his anti-police rhetoric and insisting his attacks on Israel aren’t antisemitism, but Jewish New Yorkers are living with the daily consequences of an increasingly hostile climate. Cara Trager deserved a mayor who treats her safety as more than just a political talking point.
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