The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a case of homicide after a Jewish man died due to injuries sustained in an altercation at an Israel-Palestine protest in California, US.
- A
Jewish man, Paul Kessler, died from blunt force head trauma he sustained in an
altercation at Israel-Palestine protests in California, US. - The
incident is being investigated as an isolated case although the possibility of
a hate crime has not been ruled out. - The Jewish Federation of Greater
Los Angeles identified it as the fourth act of antisemitic violence in the Los
Angeles area in 2023.
A
Jewish man who fell to the ground in an altercation amid pro-Israel and
pro-Palestinian street protests in California died on Monday, and his death was
determined to be a homicide, law enforcement and a Jewish organisation said.
Paul
Kessler, 69, died of blunt force head trauma a day after the altercation on
Sunday, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said, adding that witnesses
described the incident as battery.
As
of Monday night, no suspect was in custody in what the sheriff’s office said
“appears to be isolated and not part of a large effort,” though it
had not ruled out a hate crime.
The
incident took place as emotions have run high in the United States over the war
between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, with US officials and
civil rights groups warning of increased threats against Jews, Muslims and Arab
Americans since fighting broke out on 7 October.
Last
month, an Illinois man was charged with hate crimes for stabbing a 6-year-old
Muslim boy to death and wounding his mother in an attack that officials said
targeted them for their religion in response to the war.
READ | US man charged with hate crimes for fatal stabbing of Muslim boy, 6, amid Israel-Hamas conflict
The
Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles identified the victim as a Jewish man
and labelled the incident as the fourth act of antisemitic violence in the Los
Angeles area this year and the second since 7 October.
Separate
pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations occurred simultaneously on Sunday
in the city of Thousand Oaks, about 65 km west of Los Angeles, the sheriff’s
office said.
Kessler
was involved in a physical altercation between counter-protesters, the
sheriff’s office said, citing witness accounts. It did not specify which side
instigated the altercation.
The statement said:
During the altercation, Kessler fell backwards and struck his head on the ground. Kessler was transported to an area hospital for advanced medical treatment. On 6 November 2023, Kessler succumbed to his injuries.
Deputies
asked the public for help in what it called “an active and ongoing
investigation.” The sheriff’s office said it would hold a news conference
on Tuesday about the incident.
The
leader of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, citing conversations
with local government officials, said a pro-Palestinian protester had struck
the victim on the head with a megaphone.
Rabbi
Noah Farkas, president and chief executive of the group, said investigators
have identified the person but that they have not made an arrest because the
probe was ongoing.
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“This
is what’s happening in American right now. There is a culture of fear and a
culture of real terror against the Jewish community happening,” Farkas
said.
Kessler,
who was carrying an Israeli flag at the demonstration, came from a family of
philanthropists who were devastated by his death, Farkas said.
The
Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil
rights group, also expressed grief over what it called a “tragic and
shocking loss,” while also asking people to “refrain from jumping to
conclusions” or “sensationalising such a tragedy for political
gains.”
Our Los Angeles chapter’s Executive Director @HussamA: “We are deeply saddened by this tragic and shocking loss. We join local Jewish leaders in calling on all individuals to refrain from jumping to conclusions, sensationalizing such a tragedy for political gains, or spreading… pic.twitter.com/ohNQjhmHsy
— CAIR National (@CAIRNational) November 7, 2023
“CAIR-LA
and the Muslim community stand with the Jewish community in rejecting any and
all violence, antisemitism, Islamophobia, or incitement of hatred,” the
statement said.