A man who threw petrol bombs during a pro-Israel rally last year in Boulder, Colorado, killing one person and injuring at least a dozen, pleaded guilty on Thursday to all charges he faced in state court and was sentenced to life in prison.
Mohamed Soliman, 46, an Egyptian citizen, pleaded guilty to a total of 184 counts, including first-degree murder, through an interpreter.
On June 1 last year, Soliman tossed two Molotov cocktails at a group of people taking part in a peaceful rally in Boulder organised to commemorate hostages seized by Hamas militants on October 7, 2023.
Prosecutors said Soliman also used a makeshift blowtorch fashioned from a commercial weed sprayer during his attack, during which he yelled "Free Palestine".
Authorities identified 29 victims, including some who were burnt or injured while fleeing or who were close enough to be considered targets of attempted murder. One victim, Karen Diamond, 82, died of her injuries that month.
Soliman was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison with no possibility of parole.
But he still faces federal charges in the attack, and the US Department of Justice is considering the possibility of a death penalty.
Soliman arrived in California in 2022 on a non-immigrant visa that expired in February 2023. He had been living in Colorado Springs. He has five children, and according to court documents, he said he waited for his daughter to graduate before carrying out the attack.
His family has a pending asylum claim. The administration of US President Donald Trump has sought to deport Soliman's family as "associates" of a terrorist, with immigration officials saying they are in the country illegally.
