Palestinian-American boy murdered in Chicagoland
With war raging in Gaza, 6-year-old Palestinian-American Wadea Al-Fayoume was fatally stabbed 26 times by his landlord in what prosecutors allege is an Islamophobic hate crime
lellens
Last weekend, 6-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume and his mother were repeatedly stabbed by their landlord. The boy was rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The mother, Hanaan Shahin, is still in critical condition.
The pair were in their rented home in Plainfield, a suburb on the southwest side of Chicago, when they were attacked. Their landlord, aged 71, specifically targeted them for their Muslim faith amid the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas War. Police quickly arrested the landlord, and prosectutors have charged him with 1st degree murder, attempted 1st degree murder, two counts of hate crimes, as well as additional charges.
The deadly attack on the Palestinian-American family has sent a wave of fear through Chicago's Palestinian and Muslim communities, which make up a growing proportion of the city and its suburbs. Several prominent members of the Muslim community in Chicago called for an end to the one-sided and Islamophobic journalism surrouding the Israel-Hamas War, while state politicans firmly condemned the attack and the anti-Muslim beliefs that caused it. An unofficial memorial has been created outside the home, with several community members leaving flowers and signs as they mourn the tragic and untimely death of a young boy.
