NYC Mayor Mamdani, during the press briefing said, the devices “were meant to injure, maim, or worse.” Jake Lang (right) demonstrates outside Gracie Mansion. (AP Photos)An improvised explosive device (IED), which was thrown near New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s house during protests in weekend is being investigated as an act of terrorism “inspired by the Islamic State,” New York City police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, said on Monday.
At a press briefing, the New York City police commissioner added that the two suspects are poised to be prosecuted in federal court in connection with the incident that took place on Saturday. The IED device was sparked during an anti-Islam demonstration and a counterprotest, NBC News reported.
An analysis of one of the two homemade bombs, which was thrown near Gracie Mansion (mayor’s official residence), revealed that it contained TATP, “a dangerous and highly volatile homemade explosive that has been used in IED attacks around the world.”
Yesterday, white supremacist Jake Lang organized a protest outside Gracie Mansion rooted in bigotry and racism. Such hate has no place in New York City. It is an affront to our city’s values and the unity that defines who we are.
What followed was even more disturbing. Violence…
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) March 8, 2026
NYC Mayor Mamdani, during the press briefing on Monday said, the devices “were meant to injure, maim, or worse.” Notably, the devices did not detonate and no one was injured.
The NYPD Bomb Squad has conducted a preliminary analysis of a device that was ignited and deployed at a protest yesterday and has determined that it is not a hoax device or a smoke bomb. It is, in fact, an improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or…
— Jessica S. Tisch (@NYPDPC) March 8, 2026
Tisch declined to link the incident with the ongoing military conflict in Iran, where US and Israel have launched airstrikes against Tehran. Authorities do “not have information that connects this investigation to what is going on overseas in Iran,” NYC police commissioner added.
In a post on X, Tisch said that the object thrown near Gracie Mansion during the Saturday’s protest was an “improvised explosive device that could have caused serious injury or death.” She added that two devices were thrown, while the third suspicious object tested negative for explosive material.
Mamdani, who is New York City’s first Muslim mayor, on Monday confirmed that he, along with his wife, were at a museum in Brooklyn when the IEDs were thrown near their residence.
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“They are suspected of coming here to commit an act of terrorism. There is video of these two individuals throwing two devices towards the protest,” the NYC mayor said.
Mamdani further added, “The police department has determined that these were improvised explosive devices made to injure, maim or worse.”
