Two allegedly ISIS-vowed young men from Pennsylvania are in custody, both facing five federal charges in New York after allegedly throwing two ignited improvised explosive devices (IEDs) into clashing crowds outside the city mayor’s residence.

Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19, were arrested on March 7, near Gracie Mansion in Manhattan, New York, where a protest called “Stop the Islamic Takeover of New York City, Stop New York City Public Muslim Prayer” clashed with a counter-protest called “Run Nazis Out of New York City.”

Security footage and body camera audio appeared to show Balat and Kayumi involved in allegedly throwing two IEDs into the crowd of protesters and at police, and then verbally declaring to police after their arrest that they swore allegiance to terror group ISIS. Balat also said they had intended to execute an attack more deadly than the Boston Marathon bombing.

The federal charges, which were filed in the Southern District of New York on March 9, are Attempted Provision of Material Support and Resources to a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, Use of a Weapon of Mass Destruction, Transportation of Explosive Materials, Interstate Transportation and Receipt of Explosives, and Unlawful Possession of Destructive Devices.

The charge of attempting to provide support to a designated foreign terrorist organization carries a maximum 20 years in prison, and the other four carry a 10-year maximum sentence.

The incident is still under investigation, but here is what we know so far.

Timeline of Alleged Bombing Attempt

The alleged bombing attempt occurred around midday on Saturday, March 7, and resulted in no casualties or fatalities. That was because the two bombs failed to detonate.

According to the Criminal Complaint filed by the Justice Department, the first device was allegedly ignited and thrown at the protesters by Balat at approximately 12:15 p.m. ET. Photography appears to show him then running to another location, where Kayumi hands him a second explosive device. After apparently lighting the second fuse and throwing the device at NYPD officers, Balat and Kayumi tried to flee. Both men were tackled and taken into custody.

NYPD also secured the explosive devices and passed them on to the FBI, which found that the first device constituted a destructive device that contained TATP. FBI special agent Jennifer Gioia said in the complaint that the material is “colloquially known as the ‘Mother of Satan,’” which is “extremely sensitive to impact, friction, and heat; and has been used in multiple terrorist attacks over the last decade.”

Meanwhile, law enforcement officers discovered a parked car with a New Jersey license plate registered to Balat’s relative. Data from an automatic license plate reader showed the vehicle was moving east toward Upper Manhattan via the George Washington Bridge Upper Level northbound at approximately 11:36 a.m. that same day.

Kayumi’s mother also filed a missing person report on March 7, according to the complaint, stating she last saw him at 10:30 a.m. that day.

Inside the car, law enforcement said they found, among other things, a notebook which contained the note “TATP explosive,” a page that contained a list of chemical ingredients like “acetone,” “hydrogen peroxide,” and “sulfuric acid,” and another page that listed components and quantities like “aluminum can x6,” and “a box of bolts ect [sic] 2x.”

“Based on my training and experience, I believe that these notes are a reference to materials that could be used to build explosive devices like the one that Balat and Kayumi used on or about March 7, 2026,” Gioia said.

FBI bomb technicians found and conducted controlled detonations of explosive residue found at a public storage facility on March 9 in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, near where Balat’s family lives.

Apparent Allegiance to ISIS

The complaint goes on to allege that both men declined to remain silent upon their arrest.

Body camera footage from the arresting officers appeared to pick up Balat saying, “This isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the prophet ... We take action! We take action!” and, “If I didn’t do it, someone else will come and do it.”

Body camera footage also appeared to capture someone from the crowd asking Kayumi why he did it, and Kayumi allegedly responded, in part, saying “ISIS.”

Upon arriving at the precinct, both Balat and Kayumi waived their Miranda rights.

Balat apparently wrote a note, which read, “All praise is due to Allah, lord of all worlds! I pledge my allegience [sic] to the Islamic State. Die in your rage yu [sic] kuffar!” Kuffar is a word referring to someone who does not believe in Islam, and “Die in your rage” is an ISIS slogan.

Kayumi allegedly indicated to law enforcement that he was affiliated with ISIS, and further stated in substance and part that he had watched ISIS propaganda on his phone and that his actions on March 7 were partly inspired by ISIS.

Balat also allegedly told law enforcement that he had hoped to accomplish something “even bigger” than the Boston Marathon Bombing, noting that it was “only three deaths.”

“This was an alleged ISIS-inspired act of terrorism that could have killed American citizens,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a Justice Department press release. “We will not allow ISIS’s poisonous, anti-American ideology to threaten this nation—our law enforcement officers will remain vigilant, as they were when these devices were brought to a protest.”

Concerns of Lone-Wolf Attacks, Radicalized Youth

Kayumi graduated from a high school just four miles north of where Balat’s family lived. But Balat’s lawyer, Mehdi Essmidi, said he did not believe the two had known each other for very long.

New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch held a press conference on March 9 and said that while this incident was being investigated as an “act of ISIS-inspired terrorism,” investigators had no information that would connect this alleged bombing plot with the U.S.-Israel conflict in Iran.

Still, this attempted bombing comes only a few days after a lone-wolf mass shooting attack took place in Austin, Texas, in which the alleged gunman was wearing a sweatshirt that said “Property of Allah,” and a shirt underneath that featured Iranian-themed imagery.

New York remains on heightened alert for further threats.

Rebecca Weiner, deputy commissioner of the NYPD’s Intelligence and Counterterrorism Bureau, also noted that this incident exemplifies a radicalization of young people that her team is tracking very closely.

“This is very much in keeping with a trend that we are seeing among ISIS-inspired adherence, both in the country as well as throughout the West, younger and younger individuals who are radicalizing and mobilizing to violence, and this is taking place against the backdrop of social media, the dynamics of online culture,” she said.

Weiner added that this radicalization is not unique to ISIS and is occurring all across the ideological spectrum.

Jack Phillips, Troy Myers, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.