Federal authorities have charged two Pittsburgh-area residents with hate crime-related offenses after they allegedly vandalized various Jewish institutions with antisemitic graffiti.
Mohamad Hamad, 23, and Tayla A. Lubit, 24, are alleged to have targeted the Chabad of Squirrel Hill and the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh on July 29, 2024. Each location was defaced with graffiti displaying phrases and symbols connected to the terrorist group Hamas.
The charges, including conspiracy and defacing religious property, came after an FBI investigation tied the suspects to the scene through surveillance video footage and other forms of evidence.
The graffiti on the Chabad building read, “Jews 4 Palestine” next to an inverted red triangle, a pro-Hamas symbol that has been used widely in pro-Hamas protests across the country, according to the criminal…
