One of the Palestinian American college students shot in an attack in Burlington, Vt., over the weekend says the incident is "very hard to grapple with" and made him question his safety in the United States.
"In the West Bank, we're not safe because of the occupation, and as a Palestinian American, I'm not safe in America because of people like this that might come out," Kinnan Abdalhamid, 20, told The New York Times in an interview a day after he was discharged from the hospital.
Abdalhamid was walking in Burlington last Saturday with two of his friends, Hisham Awartani and Tahseen Ali Ahmad, when a man approached them with a handgun and fired at least four rounds, according to the Burlington Police Department.
Abdalhamid, a student at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, said the shooting altered his perception of the Untied States. He questioned if it would make parents less willing to send their children to schools in America, The Times reported.
"We kind of have this image of this place," he said. "It's just kind of disheartening that now I feel like this is kind of shattering that image."
Awartani and Ali Ahmad remained in the hospital as of Wednesday, The Times reported. The Hill has reached out to Burlington police for an update on their status.
Awartani's mother, Elizabeth Price, told news outlets earlier this week her son has an "incomplete spinal injury" and that he may never walk again after a bullet lodged in his spine.
The three victims, all 20 years old and of Palestinian descent, were in Burlington visiting one of the victim's families for the Thanksgiving holiday and were on their way back from bowling when the shooting occurred. Two of the men were wearing keffiyehs at the time of the shooting, police said.
Following a search of the area of the shooting, Jason Eaton, 48, was arrested on Sunday. When officers arrived at his apartment, Eaton didn't identify himself but told them he had been waiting for them, The Associated Press reported, citing a police affidavit.
He pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted second-degree murder on Monday and is being held without bail ahead of his next court appearance.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives along with the FBI are assisting in the investigation, including determining whether the shooting was a hate crime, Attorney General Merrick Garland said earlier this week.
Sarah George, the state's attorney of Chittenden County, said on Monday police did not currently have evidence of a hate crime enhancement, while noting, "there is no question this was a hateful act."
Police are still investigating motive and asked the public and media to "avoid making conclusions" based on statements from "people who know even less than we currently do."
The shooting sparked increased fears on U.S. campuses, which have already seen tensions spill over from Israel's war with Hamas, which began after the militant group's Oct. 7 terror attack.
