Group of Youths Harass, Assault Jewish Child Before Entering Kensington Mosque

By Matis Glenn

A group of three youths harassed and assaulted an Orthodox Jewish boy in the Kensington section of Brooklyn Thursday evening before entering a mosque for evening prayers − and have been doing so for several months, according to the victim, his mother, sister and brother.

The Jewish child, 13-years-old, says that a group of three young men, ages 10 through 15, have been harassing him on his way back from shul in the vicinity of Foster Avenue and McDonald Avenue, which often coincides with the time that the suspects pray in a mosque.

During Thursday’s incident, at around 8:20 p.m., the suspects attempted to shine a bright light in the victim’s face from a cell phone’s camera flash. The victim opened an umbrella to shield himself, whereupon the 15-year-old suspect hit him, knocking down his hat, before all three suspects ran off, and entered the mosque.

While the group began taunting him a year ago, “It got much worse after October 7,” the boy told Hamodia.

“A few months ago, they started calling me ‘Moishy,’ which is not my name,” the boy continued. “Then three weeks ago they pushed me into a gate, and today they shined a light in my face from one of their cell phones. I opened my umbrella to shield myself from the light, and he knocked my hat down.”

During another incident, one of the suspects coughed on the victim at close range.

The boy’s brother called Shomrim, which began an investigation, and obtained surveillance footage of the suspects.

Police have downplayed the harassment, the boy’s mother says. “They’re not taking it seriously,” she told Hamodia. “My son should be able to go to shul without being harassed just for being Jewish.”