Federal prosecutors have charged a pro-Palestinian activist with a hate crime for an assault on a pro-Israeli Jewish man that took place following an April protest in Midtown, Manhattan, The Post has learned.
Saadah Masoud allegedly battered Matt Greenman because of his “actual and perceived religion” following a pro-Palestine demonstration on April 20, according to a newly unsealed criminal complaint filed by the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office, The Post has learned.
Greenman, a 28, a pro-Israel counter-protester, had the Israeli flag draped around himself when he was attacked near Lexington Avenue and East 42nd Street, the filing said.
The victim was taken to the hospital, where he was treated for injuries, including a concussion.
In the complaint, dated June 10 and first filed under seal, special US agent Lavalle Jackson alleged that Masoud had participated in two other violent attacks against Jews last year.
Last June, Masoud allegedly threatened a Jewish community leader in Brooklyn by saying, “We know where you live, we will get you” and then struck the man twice in the head and body, the court documents state.
The following month, he confronted another man in Brooklyn carrying an Israeli flag and struck him in the face and stole the flag, the filing alleged.
The complaint also detailed threats against Israel supporters on Instagram, including a post that said, ”I wish I could show you the things I do to Zionist but I can’t post them.”
“Just keep watching my stories I’m going to keep violating you dirty zionist,” and “I feel bad for you zionist people when judgment day comes and we slaughter all of them like sheep,” Masoud said, according to the complaint.
Masoud took part in a pro-Palestine protest that was sponsored by Within Our Lifetime Palestine, an activist group that supports the “Intifada” against Israel.
The group, which advocates for “resistance by any means” and has been active on CUNY campuses, held a demonstration April 20 outside the Israeli consulate at 800 Second Avenue, not far from where Greenman was attacked.
Greenman’s lawyer, Gerard Filitti of the Lawfare Project, a Jewish advocacy group said, “The US Attorney’s office is sending a clear message that hate crimes targeting Jews have serious consequences.
“In the face of the massive increase in antisemitic hate crimes we are seeing across the nation, and given the many failures by local officials to take meaningful action, this federal prosecution shows that the civil rights of the Jewish community are taken seriously and entitled to protection,” he said.
The attorney added: “Justice for Matt Greenman is justice for the Jewish community.”
Masoud, a Brooklyn resident, posted a $75,000 bond but he was denied a request to visit New Jersey to attend a wedding, according to court records.
His defense attorney, Donald Doubulay, declined to comment.
