Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crimes in Colorado Firebombing

Mohamed Sabry Soliman has pleaded guilty to federal hate crime charges for firebombing a group of protesters in Colorado in June 2025, according to court documents filed Thursday. The attack resulted in injuries to at least 12 people, and one person later died from their injuries.

Soliman previously pleaded guilty in May to 101 state charges, including first-degree murder, for which he received a life sentence. He had initially pleaded not guilty to the federal charges.

Prosecutors have recommended a sentence of life in prison plus 50 years for the federal charges. Sentencing is scheduled for January.

Authorities stated that Soliman had planned the attack for a year, researching explosives before traveling from his home in Colorado Springs to a protest in Boulder. The demonstration, organized by Run for Those in Colorado, was held weekly to advocate for the release of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas during the October 7 attacks. While throwing Molotov cocktails at the crowd on June 1, 2025, Soliman was heard shouting "Free Palestine."

Karen Diamond, 82, died three weeks after the attack due to injuries sustained. Her husband, Lou Diamond, also suffered severe burns and required a month-long hospital stay in a burn unit.

Court documents indicate Soliman told police after his arrest that he intended to "kill all Zionist people." Soliman, an Egyptian national, arrived in California in 2022 on a non-immigrant visa that expired in February 2023.

The firebombing incident heightened concerns regarding antisemitic violence in the United States, occurring shortly after a fatal shooting outside a Jewish center in Washington D.C.