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NYPD Says Attackers Shouted 'ISIS' Before Beating Man in Suspected Hate Crime

Police say a man wearing traditional South Asian clothing was walking with a young girl in the Bronx when a group shouted "ISIS, ISIS," and attacked him.
Photo via Flickr

Police in New York City are investigating a suspected hate crime that allegedly involved a group of assailants shouting, "ISIS, ISIS," an acronym that refers to the Islamic State, before beating a man.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) told VICE News that officers responded to a report of an assault at around 5:30pm on Friday near Watson Avenue and Pugsley Avenue in the Bronx. When they arrived on the scene, the cops found a 43 year-old man with bruises on his head and face.

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"An investigation revealed that the male was walking with a nine-year-old female when the suspects yelled out to victim 'ISIS, ISIS' and punched him several times on the head before kicking him when he fell to the floor," the NYPD said.

According to the New York Times, the man was wearing a shalwar kameez, a traditional South Asian outfit with a long tunic and loose-fitting pants.

Related: Islamophobic Attacks Have Spiked in the US Since the Paris Attacks

The NYPD said that no arrests have been made, and an investigation by the department's Hate Crime Task Force is ongoing. The victim in the attack was transported to a local hospital, treated for his injuries, and released.

Advocacy groups have recorded a surge in Islamophobic incidents since the Islamic State attacks in Paris last November. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said it received more reports about acts of discrimination, intimidation, threats, and violence targeting American Muslims and Islamic institutions in the weeks following the Paris attacks than during any other period since the September 11 attacks. The majority of the incidents were against places of worship, where mosques were vandalized or threatened through phone calls or letters.

Follow Atoosa Moinzadeh on Twitter: @amoinzadeh

Photo via Flickr