The Trump administration is suing anti-Israel protesters for harassing and assaulting Jewish worshipers at a religious event in New Jersey last year — resulting in a local dentist getting charged with felony assault for defending himself, according to the complaint.
The Justice Department filed the civil suit Monday accusing two Garden State groups — Party for Socialism and Liberation New Jersey and American Muslims for Palestine New Jersey — and six rabblerousers of launching a “coordinated effort to intimidate and disrupt Jewish worshipers” outside the Congregation Ohr Torah in West Orange on Nov. 13, 2024.
The 20-page suit stems from a real estate fair — organized by dentist Moshe Glick — where property in Israel and the West Bank was set to be sold.
Glick was forced to move the event from his home in West Orange to the nearby synagogue after he received a “threatening letter” from one of the demonstrators, Tova Fry, aka Terry Fry, and the anti-Israel groups demanding he cancel it altogether, according to the complaint filed Monday in New Jersey federal court.
AMP posted on social media to rally demonstrators to Glick’s event, with the message, “Settlers bring illegal land sales back to New Jersey again! Zionists are selling stolen Palestinian land in Jerusalem,” the suit said.
The night of “religious observance” took a violent turn, however, when a swarm of 50 masked protesters showed up, wielding vuvuzelas — and burst through a police barricade set up around the synagogue, the lawsuit claimed.
“The Jew is here!” one of the defendants in the suit, Eric Camins, allegedly shouted at Jewish worshiper David Silberberg.
That’s when another protester, Altaf Sharif, attacked Silberberg, dragging him to a parking lot — before placing him in a chokehold, the suit alleged.
Glick rushed to help Silberberg and whacked Sharif on the head with a flashlight “in defense of Glick’s life,” according to the court papers.
The dentist has pleaded not guilty to felony assault charges — insisting he acted in self-defense — and cheered the feds’ support Tuesday.
“Today’s filing by the Department of Justice affirms what our community has been saying all along: the real violations were committed by those who intimidated, blocked and attacked a member of the community in front of a synagogue,” he said in a statement.
“The indictment by the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office against me was improperly obtained, and my motion has been filed seeking its dismissal. My defense team is confident it will be dismissed.
“The charges brought against me in Essex County are baseless. I acted in defense of someone being viciously attacked when the police failed to respond.”
The DOJ suit seeks tens of thousands of dollars in damages from each of the protesters and the advocacy groups, who did not return requests for comment.
Additional reporting by Alex Oliveira
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