Republican attorney general candidate Saritha Komatireddy said Friday that she would declare a state of emergency over rising antisemitism if elected, speaking days after a young rabbi was allegedly stabbed with a syringe in Manhattan’s Diamond District.
Komatireddy, a former federal prosecutor challenging Democratic incumbent Letitia James, made the pledge at the scene of Wednesday’s attack. Video appeared to show a woman following 26-year-old Yousef Krish before apparently driving a syringe into his back.
“When I am attorney general, I will declare a state of emergency on antisemitism on day one,” Komatireddy told reporters.
She pointed to NYPD statistics released this month showing that Jewish New Yorkers, who account for an estimated 10% to 12% of the city’s population, have been the targets of more than half of all confirmed hate crimes reported this year.
“Every Jewish New Yorker is feeling the rise of hate in our city and in our state,” Komatireddy said.
The assault on Krish may be the latest episode in a continuing wave of anti-Jewish incidents. Police and law enforcement sources said he was walking on West 47th Street at about 6 p.m. Wednesday when a Russian-speaking woman began harassing him amid the evening crowds.
According to the sources, video showed Krish attempting to get away and stepping into the street, only for the woman to follow him and stab him in the back with a sharp object. He was taken to a hospital and listed in stable condition.
“I’m still shaken,” Krish, who lives in Brooklyn, told the Jewish digital outlet Chabad.org. “I never imagined I’d be stabbed simply for being Jewish, right here in New York City.”
Krish recently received rabbinic ordination and travels each day from Crown Heights to Midtown, where he shares religious teachings with Jewish business owners, the outlet reported.
“As I try to make sense of what happened, I keep thinking about my grandparents,” he told Chabad.org. “They survived the Holocaust, experienced the worst of hatred, and still went on to build a proud Jewish family.
“I know what they’d tell me now: Don’t back down.”
The woman suspected in the attack had not been identified or arrested as of Friday. The NYPD’s Hate Crime Task Force was investigating.
Krish’s father told The Post that his son was “doing OK” and remained under medical observation to guard against complications. The stabbing left his lower back bleeding.
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“Everyone knows about it,” his father said when asked about rising antisemitism in the city. “Something needs to be done.”
Jewish New Yorkers have reported being punched or harassed without warning on city streets in recent months. In July, a man on the Upper West Side was stabbed in the chest as he left a synagogue by an assailant who allegedly shouted, “Allahu Akbar!”
More than half of Jewish New Yorkers of voting age have said they feel unsafe in the city, particularly since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack on Israel. Another 42% said they had been verbally harassed because of their faith.
“Even when we have the best police force in the world, and we do, they can arrest someone, but if there’s not follow-up through charging, prosecution, conviction, and sentencing, then it won’t work,” Komatireddy said.
“The stakes couldn’t be higher. Crime instills fear in communities. Crime intimidates. Crime makes people feel unwelcome.”
Komatireddy also called it “unacceptable” that she said the attorney general’s Hate Crimes Unit was not staffed under James. James’ office rejected that claim, saying the unit operates within its fully staffed Civil Rights Bureau.
“I will staff the Hate Crimes Unit, and I will ensure that we prosecute hate crimes and all crime in New York,” Komatireddy said. “I’ll do it myself if I have to.”
Komatireddy was joined by Rabbi Daniel Schonbuch — who compared the state of antisemitism in the city to “1935 in Germany.”
Republican state comptroller candidate Joseph Hernandez, who was also at the press conference, blamed Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his outspoken anti-Israel sentiments for fanning hatred.
“This has to stop. The mayor needs to stop,” Hernandez said. “If this continues, there’s going to be bloodshed. That bloodshed is going to be the responsibility of the mayor. We have to stop this trajectory as soon as possible.”
Komatireddy and James have been closely polling since their fierce debate earlier in October, with some polls finding the incumbent leading by about 50.7% to 44.7% ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
James, who has been AG since 2019, defended her history of addressing antisemitism in a statement to The Post — accusing Komatireddy of “political theater.”
“New York Attorney General Letitia James has proudly stood shoulder to shoulder with Jewish New Yorkers at every stage of her career — protecting communities from discriminatory scams and restrictive zoning — while our opponent plays politics,” a campaign spokesperson said.