Three Students of Palestinian Descent Shot, Injured in Vermont

Facts

• Three 20-year-old college students of Palestinian descent — one of whom is a legal resident and two are US citizens — were shot in the street near the University of Vermont in Burlington on Saturday evening while visiting one of the student's family for Thanksgiving. Police said the attacker, the now-detained 48-year-old Jason Eaton, fled on foot after injuring the young men.¹
• Kinnan Abdalhamid attends Haverford College in Pennsylvania and Tahseen Ahmed attends Trinity College in Connecticut, while Hisham Awartani, attends Brown University [in Rhode Island]. Awartani, for whom Brown is holding a vigil, is in the University of Vermont Medical Center Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with a bullet in his spine; the other two are also in the ICU.²
• Awartani’s great-uncle Marwan Awartani, a former Palestinian education minister, reportedly said Hisham 'lost feeling in the lower part of his body' after one of the at least four bullets fired at the men struck his spinal cord. Brown University President Christina Paxson said he's 'expected to survive his injuries' but that 'There are not enough words to express the deep anguish I feel.'³
• Haverford College said Kinnan 'and his friends are all Palestinian students studying at US colleges and universities,' adding that 'we await on whether it will be pursued as a hate crime.' Trinity College said Ahmed, who was reportedly shot in the chest, 'is in stable condition.'³
• Authorities said 'there is no additional information to suggest the suspect's motive,' with both the Burlington police department and the FBI saying they're investigating the shooting. However, an attorney for the victims and their families, Abed Ayoub, argued it was 'a targeted shooting and a targeted crime,' adding that 'They weren't robbed, they weren't mugged.'⁴
• During his arraignment Monday, Jason Eaton, who is being held without bail pending a second hearing, pleaded not guilty. His mother, Mary Reed, told The Daily Beast her son had struggled with mental health and job security but had been 'in such a good mood' when they met for Thanksgiving on Thursday.⁵

Sources: ¹NBC, ²CBS, ³Al Jazeera, ⁴CNN and ⁵BBC News.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by France 24. Political, religious, and ethnic tensions have been on the rise since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack against Israel and the resulting bloody conflict in Gaza. An unfortunate consequence of that is the rise of both foreign and domestic extremism targeting Jewish, Muslim, Palestinian, and Arab communities. This horrific incident is a consequence of soaring extremism in a polarizing geopolitical environment, and all stakeholders have a responsibility to tamp down toxic rhetoric that can lead to violence.
• Narrative B, as provided by New York Post. This is a tragic incident, and the public and media should not jump to conclusions. Eaton has a history of mental health struggles and was observed to be in a calm and positive mood before the incident. As more details emerge in the investigation, the public will in due time learn about the motive and mental state of the alleged shooter and learn key context.