Advocates rally on City Hall steps to end Jewish hate

Rally to end Jewish hate

The NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the moment a driver apparently tried to run over several Jewish men and the incident was caught on surveillance. FOX 5 NY's Jessica Formoso has the latest from City Hall where there were more calls to end violence.

NEW YORK - Advocates gathered on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday and rallied to end Jewish hate.

Civil Rights groups EndJewHatred and Take Back NYC called on the City Council to address the public safety they say has been caused by the recent protests.

They say since Oct. 7, when Hamas launched a deadly attack on southern Israel, there's been an increase in attacks against the Jewish Community.

"We demand that the city council work to meaningfully address the anarchy generated by these anti-Jewish protests and ensure that continued lawlessness comes to an end. We need to take back NYC from the hands of pro-terror sycophants who are occupying our public spaces and are preventing law-abiding citizens from exercising their legal rights to use that same space without intimidation, harassment, and the threat of violence," Ahdoot said.

They want the city council to implement harsher penalties for individuals accused and convicted of hate crimes. They are also asking for fewer restrictions on the NYPD, to enable them to more expediently enforce the full extent of the law.

Advocates say their civil rights are at threat right now, and they deserve the same safety and security and rights as every other New Yorker.

Man attempts to mow down pedestrians outside of Jewish school in Brooklyn

This comes after a driver is facing numerous hate crime charges after allegedly attempting to mow down a group of students and rabbis near a school in Brooklyn on Wednesday.

Police say 58-year-old Asghar Ali slammed the brakes of his car, turned it around, and then barreled toward pedestrians outside the Mesivta Nachlas Yakov School in Canarsie.

According to the Flatbush Shomrim Safety Patrol, Ali was driving a White Ford sedan on Glenwood Road, and turned East on 55th Street before redirecting towards the men.

Witnesses on the scene said that he was yelling antisemitic slurs, including, "I'm going to kill all the Jews," during the rampage.

Ali tried to drive away from the scene of the attack but was quickly tracked down by community members and police and was taken into custody.

Police said no one was injured in the attack.

Ali faces more than a dozen charges including attempted murder, attempted assault, menacing, reckless driving as a hate crime.