TheLittleTwentieth – Renowned Papers Edition, AI Infused

Local sources from United States: Al Jazeera English, ITV News.
UK coverage: ITV News.

Stuart Seldowitz, a former Obama-era National Security Council official, has been arrested after videos of him using Islamophobic language towards a food vendor went viral on social media. Seldowitz, 64, is heard in the videos calling the vendor a terrorist and making derogatory comments about Palestinians. He has been charged with hate crime, second-degree aggravated harassment, and stalking. The incident comes amid a rise in reports of Islamophobic and antisemitic abuse in the US following the Israel-Hamas conflict. Seldowitz has confirmed that he is the person in the videos.

Videos of the incident, which occurred in Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighbourhood, show Seldowitz calling the vendor a “terrorist” and making derogatory comments about Prophet Muhammad. Seldowitz also threatened to use his government connections to mobilise Egypt’s secret police against the vendor. Seldowitz served as the acting director for the National Security Council South Asia Directorate under the former President Barack Obama administration. He also worked as a senior political officer in the State Department’s Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs.

In response to the incident, New Yorkers rallied to support the vendor, lining up to buy chicken and rice at the food cart in Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighbourhood on Tuesday. The Street Vendor Project, which works with the thousands of food carts in New York, described a “moving scene” with New Yorkers from “all walks of life coming together” and “taking a stand against anti-Muslim hate”.

Seldowitz told local television news before his detention on Wednesday that the video posted on social media failed to tell the whole story and that he became upset after the man expressed sympathies for the Palestinian group Hamas – although none of the videos shows the vendor mentioning the group that rules Gaza. US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said: “The United States unequivocally opposes racist or discriminatory language of any form.”

The incident is a stark reminder of the need to combat hate and bigotry in all its forms. Seldowitz’s arrest is a reminder that no one is above the law and that hate speech will not be tolerated. It is also a reminder of the importance of standing up for what is right and of the power of collective action to combat hate and bigotry.