A fight broke out at Sushi Fumi on May 18. (photo courtesy of Lili Bosse’s Instagram account)

The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating an attack on May 18 against Jewish patrons at a restaurant on La Cienega Boulevard as a hate crime.

LAPD spokesman Jeff Lee said police responded to a 911 call about the attack at approximately 9:50 p.m. and found five victims who had sustained minor injuries outside Sushi Fumi, located at 359 N. La Cienega Blvd. They had allegedly been attacked by a group of people who were part of a pro-Palestinian caravan of cars slowly passing by on La Cienega Boulevard.

Camera footage posted on social media showed a group of men, mostly wearing all black with their faces covered, fighting with a group of restaurant patrons. The attackers also allegedly shouted anti-Jewish slurs. Lee said the suspects fled north on La Cienega Boulevard in a dark-colored Jeep before officers arrived.

“We are treating it as a hate crime based on the preliminary investigation,” Lee said. “We are looking for three suspects. No arrests have been made.”

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Nicholas Prange said the LAFD was also dispatched to the incident at approximately 9:54 p.m. Nobody required transportation to a hospital, he added. Prange did not know the extent of the victims’ injuries and had no further information.

Police are also investigating another incident involving an alleged attack on a Jewish man that occurred on May 17 near La Brea and Rosewood avenues. Security camera video posted on social media and broadcast by television news outlets shows an Orthodox Jewish man running through a parking structure while being chased by a car with a large Palestinian flag hanging from a window. The man escaped unharmed, and the LAPD spokesman Lee had no further information about the incident.

Local officials swiftly denounced the crimes. Beverly Hills City Councilwoman Lili Bosse reposted video of the attack at the restaurant on social media and said she was outraged.

“This horrible incident happened here in Los Angeles. Diners were attacked for being Jewish and blocks away a man was attacked while walking for being Jewish,” Bosse said. “My mother survived the death camp Auschwitz and here we are today surrounded by Jew hatred. I am a proud Jew and will always stand up to hate of any kind.”

The Anti-Defamation League Los Angeles, which monitors hate crimes against the Jewish community, also decried the incidents.

“We are outraged over reports of an antisemitic assault on diners at an L.A. restaurant and thank LAPD for investigating the incident as a possible hate crime,” read a statement by the ADL. “Criticism of Israeli policy is not always antisemitic. Violent attacks while yelling antisemitic slurs is a hate crime.”

Police have not connected the local attacks to a large pro-Palestinian demonstration on May 18 outside the Israeli Consulate in West Los Angeles. The protest occurred amid rising tensions between Palestinian and Israeli military forces in Israel.

Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz, 5th District, said he was briefed by the LAPD on May 18 about the attack at the restaurant and went to the scene after it occurred. Koretz said both crimes are unacceptable.

“I strongly condemn the attacks against the Jewish community that have taken place. These were antisemitic hate crimes that are unconscionable,” Koretz said in a statement. “These violent acts will not go unchecked. We will do everything necessary to bring these criminals to justice and to restore order on our city streets. We are not going to allow the violence in the Middle East to spill out onto the streets of Los Angeles.”

In a joint statement on May 19, the Beverly Hills City Council members denounced antisemitism and acts of violence.

“The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas is painful to witness,” the statement read. “After a peaceful period in recent years, lives are once again being lost in senseless violence emerging from a place of hate.

“There have been increased acts of antisemitism including here in the Los Angeles area where people gathered for dinner were apparently attacked simply for being Jewish.

“As one of the only Jewish-majority cities outside of Israel, we feel particularly concerned with the rise of antisemitism and call for an end to the assaults and rhetoric. Any calls to support BDS or call out Israel in a discriminatory fashion by encouraging a boycott are unjustifiable and should be rejected outright. This City Council will always speak out against discrimination against Jews or any other group.

“Nations have the right to defend themselves and the Beverly Hills City Council calls for peace and security in the world and right here at home. Violence and hate have no place anywhere.

“We are particularly thinking of our brothers and sisters in our sister city of Herzliya during this difficult time. Please be assured the Beverly Hills Police Department is actively monitoring the situation and is prepared to keep our residents and visitors safe,” the statement concluded.

The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating an attack on May 18 against Jewish patrons at a restaurant on La Cienega Boulevard as a hate crime.

LAPD spokesman Jeff Lee said police responded to a 911 call about the attack at approximately 9:50 p.m. and found five victims who had sustained minor injuries outside Sushi Fumi, located at 359 N. La Cienega Blvd. They had allegedly been attacked by a group of people who were part of a pro-Palestinian caravan of cars slowly passing by on La Cienega Boulevard.

Camera footage posted on social media showed a group of men, mostly wearing all black with their faces covered, fighting with a group of restaurant patrons. The attackers also allegedly shouted anti-Jewish slurs. Lee said the suspects fled north on La Cienega Boulevard in a dark-colored Jeep before officers arrived.

“We are treating it as a hate crime based on the preliminary investigation,” Lee said. “We are looking for three suspects. No arrests have been made.”

Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Nicholas Prange said the LAFD was also dispatched to the incident at approximately 9:54 p.m. Nobody required transportation to a hospital, he added. Prange did not know the extent of the victims’ injuries and had no further information.

Police are also investigating another incident involving an alleged attack on a Jewish man that occurred on May 18 near La Brea and Rosewood avenues. Security camera video posted on social media and broadcast by television news outlets shows an Orthodox Jewish man running through a parking structure while being chased by a car with a large Palestinian flag hanging from a window. The man escaped unharmed, and the LAPD spokesman Lee had no further information about the incident.

Local officials swiftly denounced the crimes. Beverly Hills City Councilwoman Lili Bosse reposted video of the attack at the restaurant on social media and said she was outraged.

“This horrible incident happened here in Los Angeles. Diners were attacked for being Jewish and blocks away a man was attacked while walking for being Jewish,” Bosse said. “My mother survived the death camp Auschwitz and here we are today surrounded by Jew hatred. I am a proud Jew and will always stand up to hate of any kind.”

The Anti-Defamation League Los Angeles, which monitors hate crimes against the Jewish community, also decried the incidents.

“We are outraged over reports of an antisemitic assault on diners at an L.A. restaurant and thank LAPD for investigating the incident as a possible hate crime,” read a statement by the ADL. “Criticism of Israeli policy is not always antisemitic. Violent attacks while yelling antisemitic slurs is a hate crime.”

Police have not connected the local attacks to a large pro-Palestinian demonstration on May 18 outside the Israeli Consulate in West Los Angeles. The protest occurred amid rising tensions between Palestinian and Israeli military forces in Israel.

Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz, 5th District, said he was briefed by the LAPD on May 18 about the attack at the restaurant and went to the scene after it occurred. Koretz said both crimes are unacceptable.

“I strongly condemn the attacks against the Jewish community that have taken place. These were antisemitic hate crimes that are unconscionable,” Koretz said in a statement. “These violent acts will not go unchecked. We will do everything necessary to bring these criminals to justice and to restore order on our city streets. We are not going to allow the violence in the Middle East to spill out onto the streets of Los Angeles.”

In a joint statement on May 19, the Beverly Hills City Council members denounced antisemitism and acts of violence.

“The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas is painful to witness,” the statement read. “After a peaceful period in recent years, lives are once again being lost in senseless violence emerging from a place of hate.

“There have been increased acts of antisemitism including here in the Los Angeles area where people gathered for dinner were apparently attacked simply for being Jewish.

“As one of the only Jewish-majority cities outside of Israel, we feel particularly concerned with the rise of antisemitism and call for an end to the assaults and rhetoric. Any calls to support BDS or call out Israel in a discriminatory fashion by encouraging a boycott are unjustifiable and should be rejected outright. This City Council will always speak out against discrimination against Jews or any other group.

“Nations have the right to defend themselves and the Beverly Hills City Council calls for peace and security in the world and right here at home. Violence and hate have no place anywhere.

“We are particularly thinking of our brothers and sisters in our sister city of Herzliya during this difficult time. Please be assured the Beverly Hills Police Department is actively monitoring the situation and is prepared to keep our residents and visitors safe,” the statement concluded.