US Muslim Group Urges White House, State Department Not To Work With Former Official Who Harassed Halal Vendor

The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) on Wednesday urged the White House and the State Department to stop future collaboration with a former Obama administration adviser who was captured repeatedly harassing a New York City halal food vendor.

Stuart Seldowitz was captured on video making threats and Islamophobic comments against the Muslim food vendor.

In one video, Seldowitz calls the vendor a "terrorist" and said: "If we killed 4,000 Palestinian kids, you know what? It wasn't enough. It wasn't enough."

CAIR expressed concerns about Seldowitz's inflammatory statements.

"We are deeply disturbed by the racist, Islamophobic, and downright psychotic words of former Obama administration official #StuartSeldowitz," it wrote on X. "We call on the @WhiteHouse and @StateDept to condemn him and make it clear the government will not be working with him in the future."

In another video, Seldowitz is seen taking a picture of the vendor with his mobile phone while instructing him to "smile for me." Despite the vendor's limited English, Seldowitz persists with his harassment, making derogatory comments about Prophet Muhammad and asking the vendor offensive questions like, "Did you rape your daughter like Muhammad did?"

The response from the vendor was that he does not speak English, but Seldowitz continued with his attacks.

"What do you speak? You speak Arabic, the language of the Quran, the holy Quran that some people use as a toilet. What do you think of that, people who used the Quran as a toilet? Does it bother you?" Seldowitz said mockingly.

Seldowitz served as the acting director for the National Security Council South Asia Directorate under the Obama administration.

He also worked as a senior political officer in the State Department's Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs.

Earlier Tuesday, Gotham Government Relations, a lobbying firm based in Washington, D.C., announced it has severed ties with Seldowitz after the videos surfaced.

"Gotham Government Relations has ended all affiliation with Stuart Seldowitz, an individual who hasn't contributed to our work in years. The video of his actions is vile, racist, and beneath the dignity of the standards we practice at our firm," it wrote on X. -