New York City police said an improvised explosive device was ignited and deployed by at least one pro-Islam counterprotester during a violent clash with right-wing protesters outside Gracie Mansion, the Upper East Side home of New York’s first Muslim mayor, Zohran Mamdani, on Saturday. 

Two people were in custody after New York City police said they attempted to ignite suspicious homemade devices during a “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City” rally led by Jake Lang, a 30-year-old right-wing conservative influencer, previously pardoned for his involvement in the Jan. 6 riot. The NYC protest drew a large crowd of over 100 counterprotesters, and one demonstrator threw an ignited device toward Lang’s area, police said.

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