The wife and five children of the man accused of attacking protesters calling for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas have been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and could soon be deported, American officials say. 

The suspect, Mohamed Soliman, an Egyptian national who is in the country after overstaying a tourist visa, is accused of carrying out an antisemitic attack at Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday. Law enforcement officials say he threw Molotov cocktails at protesters calling for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas. He has also been accused of firing a makeshift flamethrower at the demonstrators.

The attack left injured at least 12 people between the ages of 52 and 88. Video from the attack shows the suspect shirtless, yelling, “Free Palestine,” “We have to end Zionists,” and, “They are killers.”

The homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, says that Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Mr. Soliman along with his immediate family. 

“Mohamed’s despicable actions will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Ms. Noem said. “We’re also investigating to what extent his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had any knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it.”

Fox News’s Bill Melugin reported that the family is being processed for expedited removal, which would allow for them to be deported without a hearing from an immigration court. 

ICE did not respond to the Sun’s request for comment by the time of publication. 

The FBI has said it is investigating the attack as an “act of terrorism.” 

Mr. Soliman has been charged with a federal hate crime, 16 counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of use of an incendiary device, 16 counts of attempted use of an incendiary device, and eight counts of first-degree assault. If convicted on the federal charge, he faces life in prison. If he is convicted of all attempted murder charges, he would face a prison sentence of 384 years. 

In an interview with law enforcement after his arrest, Mr. Soliman allegedly said he “wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead.” Investigators say he had been planning the attack for a year, but waited until his daughter graduated high school last week to carry it out.

The Department of Homeland Security says the suspect entered America in August 2022 on a B2 visa and applied for asylum in September of that year. In March 2023, he was granted a work authorization, CNN reported, which was supposed to expire at the end of March.