Self-Proclaimed 'Hamas Operative' Charged For Vandalism of Synagogue

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A self-proclaimed “Hamas operative” and a Jew who claims to see her fellow Jews as her “enemies” are accused of vandalizing synagogues and Jewish community centers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

 

 

23-year-old Lebanese-American Mohamad Hamad and 24-year-old Jewish Pittsburgh resident Talya A. Lubit were charged with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States and damaging a religious property. The pair now face a maximum sentence of two years in prison and/or a fine of $200,000.

The US Justice Department said that during an investigation, it was found that Hamad discussed building an explosive device with a third party and even tested a detonation device in July 2024.

According to the affidavit, Hamad and Lubit began their activities in October 2023, coinciding with Hamas’s attack against Israel, where 1,200 Israelis were killed and hundreds of Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage. The pair are accused of targeting and vandalizing the Chabad of Squirrel Hill and the building of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh.

 

 

Both sites are located near the Tree of Life synagogue, where a gunman launched the deadliest antisemitic attack in the history of the United States, where 11 people were killed and seven others, including the perpetrator, were injured. Pittsburgh’s Jewish community faced antisemitic threats following the 2018 attack.

Hamad, who is also a member of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, self-identified as a Hamas operative, and he sent pictures of himself wearing a green headband with the Hamas logo as part of that self-proclaimed identity. 

The Chabad house contacted local authorities in July after the words “Jews 4 Palestine” were sprayed on the building’s walls. Along with the text was an inverted red triangle, a pro-Hamas symbol initially used to mark Israeli targets during fighting in Gaza.

 

 

Also, in the same month, the Jewish Federation reported graffiti on its premises reading “[Jewish Federation] funds genocide” and “Jews hate Zionists.” The affidavit later revealed that Hamas purchased a can of “Strawberry Fields” spray paint on July 28th, the same shade as the graffiti in the Chabad house and the Jewish Federation.

CCTV footage found that the car used to purchase the spray paint strongly resembles that used by the graffitist.

Police searched Hamad’s vehicle and mobile phone and found a sweatshirt featuring an armed, masked man with the inverted red triangle symbol along with text that reads "RESPECT EXISTENCE OR EXPECT RESISTANCE."

Other evidence found by authorities during their search included Hamad’s Google Maps search history, which included Chabad’s address, as well as violent messages. 

 

 

In his messages to Lubit, Hamad said that his ultimate goal in life is martyrdom, while Lubit said she “can literally feel myself starting to see Jews as my enemies,” adding that “I’m tired of the voice in my head, telling me that a Jew would not go with the oppressed.”

Authorities condemned the pair’s actions, with Eric Olshan, the United States attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, saying that “defacing religious property is not protected speech—it is a crime.”

 “Members of our communities should be able to practice their faith without fear of being targeted for their religious affiliation, including, as alleged here, with a symbol associated with a terrorist organization. Protecting the civil rights of the people of Western Pennsylvania is of paramount importance to this office and our partners in law enforcement, and we are dedicated to pursuing justice on behalf of the victims of these crimes.” Olshan said.

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