1 killed in New Hampshire shooting where gunman reportedly yelled ‘Free Palestine’
Local officials said they believed the alleged gunman was trying to sow chaos
The New Hampshire flag is overlaid with a gun. Photo by Getty Images
(JTA) — A man who reportedly shouted “Free Palestine!” while opening fire killed one and injured two others at a New Hampshire country club on Saturday night.
Unlike in other recent attacks where assailants have used the phrase, there was no indication that the alleged gunman was motivated by a political ideology or outlook on the Middle East, officials said on Sunday.
Instead, they said, Hunter Nadeau, who had previously been employed at the Sky Meadow Country Club in Nashua, appeared to use the slogan and others to sow chaos during his attack, which came during a wedding at the club.
“At this point, the evidence leads us to believe it is more likely that Mr. Nadeau was simply trying to make a number of statements to create chaos in the moment,” the state’s attorney general, John Formella, told reporters on Sunday. He added, “At this point, we don’t have any evidence to indicate this was a hate-based act.”
The shooting comes amid high alert over political violence in the United States, already reeling from the assassination last week of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. In recent months, assailants who shouted “Free Palestine” killed two people in a shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., and killed one person and injured several others in a firebombing on a group marching in solidarity with Israeli hostages in Boulder, Colorado. The man alleged to have set fire to the residence of Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania’s Jewish governor, in April, also said he was acting on behalf of the Palestinians.
Among those who connected the New Hampshire shooting to those incidents was Sen. John Fetterman, who tweeted on Sunday afternoon, “More political violence the day before Charlie Kirk’s funeral.” Shortly afterwards, local officials would tamp down the idea.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
