Hochul Increases State Police Presence in FBI Anti-Terrorism Task Force Amid Antisemitism Concerns in NYC

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has announced that additional state cops will be deployed to the federal Joint Terrorism Task Force’s offices in New York in response to a surge in antisemitic hate crimes. Hochul informed that the New York State Police will receive $2.5 million to embed 10 more investigators with the FBI’s counterterrorism task force in New York City, Albany, and Rochester, with eight of them located at the Joint Terrorism Task Force offices in the city. The move comes after a 214% increase in antisemitic hate crimes since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7. Hochul has declared that hate and antisemitism pose a significant danger to New Yorkers’ safety and well-being, and emphasized the heightened efforts of law enforcement to secure public places and monitor digital platforms for hate speech. Moreover, Hochul outlined various state efforts, including a $75 million investment in hate crime prevention and the expansion of the state police unit that tracks threats on social media.