University of Pittsburgh
University of PittsburghiStock

A man has been charged with felony aggravated assault after an alleged glass bottle attack on two Jewish students on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh, The Associated Press reported on Saturday, citing local media.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the 52-year-old suspect was also charged with simple assault, reckless endangering, resisting arrest and harassment.

The report, citing a criminal complaint, said the man was seen on surveillance video sitting at a table across the street from the students as they walked near Pitt’s Cathedral of Learning on Friday evening. Police say he ran across the street and hit them from behind with the bottle.

The students, who were wearing kippot, were treated at the scene, the university said. One had cuts on his face, and the other had cuts on his neck, the Post-Gazette said.

The suspect, who has no known affiliation with the school, was wearing a keffiyeh.

Agents from the FBI’s Pittsburgh field office were also sent to the scene to investigate the possibility of a hate crime, the newspaper said.

The university described the incident as “appalling” but said there was no ongoing threat to the public and added, “To be clear: Neither acts of violence nor antisemitism will be tolerated.”

Antisemitism has been on the rise, both in US campuses and in general, since Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel and the war in Gaza which followed.

In April, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reported 8,873 incidents of assault, harassment, and vandalism across the US.

This is a 140% increase compared to 2022, which was considered a peak year for antisemitic events.

An examination of the antisemitic incidents by the ADL indicated a dramatic jump comprising 5,204 antisemitic events after October 7.