A homemade bomb thrown near an anti-Islam protest in New York at the weekend is being investigated as an Islamic State group-inspired act of "terrorism," police say.
Two men allegedly involved in throwing a nail bomb packed with TATP explosives during the protest near the home of New York mayor Zohran Mamdani were arrested and will face court.
"I can confirm this morning that this is being investigated as an act of ISIS-inspired terrorism," NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said, using another name for the Islamic State group.
She said it was not thought to be linked to the ongoing conflict in Iran.
No one was hurt during the incident. The devices did not explode.
Two suspicious devices were allegedly thrown by a man identified by police as Emir Balat near the protest on Saturday led by a far-right influencer to oppose public Muslim prayer.
An AFP correspondent at the scene heard Balat shout "Allahu akbar" ("God is the greatest") during the incident.
On Sunday, the police bomb squad inspected a car connected to the men near to the scene of the incident.
Commissioner Tisch said a suspicious device found in the vehicle tested negative for explosives.
Also arrested was Ibrahim Kayumi, who it is alleged handed over a device that was dropped near a line of police by Mr Balat.
Mr Balat and Mr Kayumi awaited arraignment on Monday for charges of attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organisation and using a weapon of mass destruction.
Mr Balat, 18, later told authorities that he had pledged allegiance to the extremist group ISIS, and Mr Kayumi, 19, asserted that he was affiliated with the Islamic State group, the court complaint said.
Officers asked Mr Balat whether he was aiming to accomplish something akin to the bombing of the Boston Marathon in 2013, when two pressure-cooker bombs exploded near the finish line, killing three people and wounding hundreds more.
"No, even bigger," Mr Balat replied, according to the complaint.
An automated number plate reader captured the pair entering New York City from New Jersey less than an hour before the attack, according to the complaint.
The events unfolded after the far-right influencer, Jake Lang, staged a demonstration outside Gracie Mansion, the official residence of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is Muslim.
Mr Lang was protesting alleged "Islamification" and calling for an end to "public Muslim prayer" in New York.
His protest drew around 20 people while a counter-protest drew about 125.
Mr Mamdani said both he and his wife were not home during the incident.
He said anti-Muslim bigotry was not new to him but said: "While I found this protest appalling I will not waiver in my belief that it should be allowed to happen.
"Ours is a free society, with a right to peaceful protest [that] is sacred and it does not belong to just those we agree with, it belongs to everyone.
"New York City will never tolerate violence, whether it is from protests or counter protests."
ABC/wires
