Authorities in the US arrested the man suspected of killing two Muslim men in New Mexico in recent days. The suspect was identified as 51-year-old Muhammad Syed.
Law enforcement in Albuquerque announced the arrest of Syed Tuesday after the killings, following the condemnation given by President Joe Biden, and sparked alarm among Muslim communities in the United States. Officials said they were still investigating the possible motive but did not rule out hate crime charges against Syed.
Three Muslim men between 25 and 41 years old, were fatally shot in the Albuquerque area in the past month. Back in November 2021, another Muslim man, 62-year-old Muhammad Ahmadi from Afghanistan, was also killed, and law enforcement suspect that all the killings were linked.
Officials are set to charge Syed with the shootings of two of the victims: 41-year-old Aftab Hussein - who was killed on July 26, and 27-year-old Muhammed Afzal Hussein - who was killed on August 1. Both men come from Pakistan.
The latest victim, 25-year-old Hayeem Hussain, who was also from Pakistan, was killed Friday last week after attending the burial of the two men that were fatally shot in July and August.
According to the New York Times, a local Muslim leader said the authorities told him that the suspected killer targeted the victims out of anger over his daughter marrying a Shia Muslim. All four victims were Shia Muslims.
The Council on American Islamic Relations welcomed the arrest and condemned the “anti-Shia hatred that may have motivated the killings.”
“Although we are waiting to learn more about these crimes, we are disturbed by early indications that the alleged killer may have been targeting particular members of the Shia Community,” said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Aswad in a statement.
The Justice Department charged a member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Wednesday for plotting to murder former National Security Adviser John Bolton. The agency said Shahram Poursafi, also known as Mehdi Rezayi, was likely motivated to kill Bolton in retaliation for the murder of top IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani in 2020.
Iran does not have an extradition treaty with the United States, and Poursafi is still at large.


Ukraine-Russia War: Frontline Updates as Spring Offensive Looms
G7 Summit 2026: South Africa Excluded Amid U.S. Pressure, Kenya Invited Instead
California Renames Cesar Chavez Day to Farmworkers Day Following Sexual Abuse Allegations
Israeli Airstrike Targets Building in Beirut's Southern Suburbs Amid Ongoing Hezbollah Conflict
Trump's Signature to Appear on U.S. Currency Starting Summer 2025
Trump Pauses Iran Strikes as Peace Talks Stall Amid Military Buildup
SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn
Trump Seeks Quick End to U.S.-Iran Conflict Amid Ongoing Middle East Tensions
Maduro Faces Rare Narcoterrorism Charges in U.S. Court
Trump Signs Executive Order to Pay TSA Workers Amid Airport Security Crisis
Russia Strikes Kharkiv and Izmail as Cross-Border Drone War Escalates
What does China’s host bid mean for the High Seas Treaty?
G7 Foreign Ministers Gather in France Amid Global Tensions and U.S. Policy Uncertainty
Jay Bhattacharya to Continue Leading CDC as White House Searches for Permanent Director
US Military Eyes 10,000 Troop Surge to Middle East Amid Iran Nuclear Tensions
Trump to Visit China in May for High-Stakes Xi Summit Amid Iran War 



