The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY), a chapter of the United States’ largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, made the call on Saturday, urging the authorities to also identify and hold accountable those responsible.

In a statement, CAIR-NY Executive Director Afaf Nasher said:

“Targeting a mosque site with hateful vandalism is an act of intimidation against an entire community. Muslim New Yorkers should be able to establish houses of worship and gather for prayer without fear that their property will be targeted because of their faith.

“We urge local, state and federal law enforcement to conduct a thorough investigation and determine whether this incident constitutes a hate crime. We also call on elected officials and community leaders to speak out clearly against growing anti-Muslim bigotry and religious intimidation.”

She noted that CAIR recently said it has documented 17 incidents targeting Islamic places of worship in May, June, and July. The 17 incidents represent 51 percent of the previous year’s total and a 183 percent increase over the same three-month period last year, during which CAIR documented six such incidents.

Last week, Washington, D.C.-based CAIR responded to a number of anti-Muslim hate incidents nationwide.

CAIR called on local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate an allegedly bias-motivated spitting attack on a Muslim woman in Kentucky as a hate crime.

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CAIR’s Florida chapter welcomed charges for an alleged plot to carry out a mass shooting at a mosque.

Its Michigan chapter welcomed federal charges against an Alaska man accused of making threats to injure and murder Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud and issuing violent, Islamophobic threats against Muslims.

Its Pittsburgh and Philadelphia chapters welcomed the City of Erie’s response to reported threats targeting the local Muslim community and urged authorities to remain vigilant in protecting residents from anti-Muslim hate and intimidation.

CAIR also welcomed the federal indictment of a Utah man on a hate crime charge for allegedly stabbing a Muslim man at the West Valley Mall in West Valley City, Utah.

CAIR’s latest civil rights report documented 8,683 anti-Muslim bias complaints in 2025 – the highest number ever recorded by the organization since it began publishing civil rights reports in 1996.

Source: Cair.com