Tragedy struck California yesterday when a 69-year-old Jewish man died after dueling protests over the Israeli-Hamas conflict grew violent the day before.
An altercation broke out between pro-Israel and pro-Palestine protesters in Los Angeles on Sunday. The sheriff’s office stated that during this altercation, 69-year-old Paul Kessler fell backward and hit his head.
Early reports and one anonymous eyewitness say that’s not how it played out.
Kessler tragically succumbed to his blunt-force head trauma injuries yesterday. Law enforcement is calling his death a homicide and not ruling out that it was a hate crime. No suspect is in custody as of yet, though investigators have reportedly identified the person.
One local rabbi says this is not an isolated incident and that “there is a culture of fear and terror against the Jewish community happening.”