By Emma Tucker, CNN
(CNN) — Two people were arrested after two “suspicious” devices, which are still being analyzed, were ignited outside the New York City mayor’s mansion as tensions escalated between two opposing protest groups, police said.
“Witnesses reported seeing flames and smoke as it traveled through the air before it struck a barrier and extinguished itself a few feet from police officers,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch said at a news conference. Six people in total were arrested in connection with the events that unfolded between the groups.
The bomb squad responded and examined both devices, preliminarily determining they were slightly smaller than a football, appeared to be a jar wrapped in black tape containing bolts, screws and a hobby fuse that could be lit, Tisch said.
Both devices were sent for further testing and analysis, as it’s not yet clear whether they were functional and improvised explosives or hoax devices, Tisch said. No injuries were reported.
The incident took place during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan outside Gracie Mansion where New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his wife Rama Duwaji live. An anti-Islam protest organized by right-wing influencer and pardoned January 6 rioter Jake Lang drew roughly 20 participants, while the counter-protest, “Drive the Nazis Out of New York,” was attended by about 125 people at its peak, Tisch said.
The two groups were separated into “designated protest areas” by NYPD officers, the commissioner said.
Mamdani’s spokesperson called the Lang-organized protest “despicable and Islamophobic,” saying the events “are a stark reminder of the threats they both face regularly.” The mayor and his wife are safe, and Mamdani has been in contact with Tisch, said press secretary Joe Calvello.
Tensions escalated shortly before noon between the two groups and were further inflamed when a protester associated with Lang’s group used pepper spray against counterprotesters at around 12:15 p.m., Tisch said. About 20 minutes later, a 18-year-old counterprotester “lit and threw an ignited device toward the protest area,” which landed on a crosswalk, she added.
The man who threw the first device ran southbound to retrieve a second device from another man, who is 19-year-old, before also lighting that device and starting to run with it, she said. He dropped the second device on a street and officers secured the area, taking both men into custody, Tisch added.
The six people arrested include two who were responsible for handling and deploying the devices, the person who deployed pepper spray and three others for disorderly conduct and obstructing traffic, Tisch said.
Officers established a safety perimeter around the area and began to conduct a search with canine sweeps and manual canvassing of surrounding blocks to search for any additional hazards, which is still ongoing, the commissioner said.
There’s no indication the incident is related to the ongoing conflict in Iran, Tisch said, stressing the investigation remains active and ongoing “given the heightened threat environment.” She commended NYPD officers for running toward the man who carried the ignited “suspicious device” for “putting the safety of others in their sworn duty to protect and serve above their own personal safety.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said she had been briefed on the incident, and was “grateful there are no reported injuries.”
“New York respects the right to peaceful protest, but we have zero tolerance for hate or violence,” Hochul said.
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CNN’s Gloria Pazmino contributed to this report.
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