NEW YORK — An attacker stabbed a Jewish man while shouting “allahu akbar” in New York City on Thursday afternoon, the NYPD said, citing victim and witness statements.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said two victims were stabbed in separate attacks on the Upper West Side.

One of the victims was Jewish and one was Asian, Tisch said.

Tisch identified the suspect as 51-year-old Raul Morales, who was taken into custody at the scene. She said the NYPD was evaluating whether the attack was a hate crime, adding that “mental health may have been a factor.”

New York Assemblymember Micah Lasher, a Jewish representative of the area, was at the scene and told The Times of Israel that one of the victims was wearing a kippah.

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin said the incident appeared to be antisemitic in nature.

“The fear in the Jewish community is real. Every New Yorker deserves to feel safe in their neighborhood, regardless of their faith or identity,” Menin said in a statement.

The incident took place on Tisha B’av, the saddest day in the Jewish calendar which is marked with prayer and fasting.

The Manhattan Shomrim neighborhood watch group said the assailant stabbed the victim with a screwdriver.

The first victim was stabbed at 84th street and Central Park West, and the second at 86th Street and Amsterdam avenue.

The second stabbing took place half a block away from a Jewish community center in an area home to a large Jewish population.

The NYPD received the first call about the incident at 1:31 p.m., a spokesperson said.

The site of each stabbing was roped off with police tape, officers were at the scene and a police helicopter hovered........

© The Times of Israel