Muslim girl, 15, pepper-sprayed in Brooklyn; NYPD hate crime task force investigating

New York City police are searching for a woman suspected of pepper-spraying a Muslim teenager in the face after making Islamophobic remarks.

The 15-year-old girl was attacked on the afternoon of Dec. 19 while walking down a street in Bensonhurst, a residential neighborhood in south Brooklyn. Police say the girl was approached by an unidentified woman who made "anti-ethnic remarks to the victim, then pepper sprayed the victim in the face."

The woman, believed to be in her 40s, fled on foot, according to an unsigned email from a NYPD spokesperson. The teenager refused medical attention at the scene. A photo released by the police department shows the woman wearing a dark colored hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and blue backpack.

NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident.

The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations released a statement on Wednesday calling for hate crime charges to be brought against the suspect in the case.

“We condemn this alleged attack and call on law enforcement authorities and public officials to do whatever they can to protect minority communities targeted by hate,” said CAIR-NY Executive Director Afaf Nasher in a statement.

Citing WPIX, a television news station, CAIR-NY said that the woman called the teenager a "terrorist" before pepper-spaying her. Police have not detailed what the woman is accused of saying.

Hate crimes against Muslim Americans has been a concern for local, state and federal law enforcement agencies across the country since the Israel-Hamas war broke out in October. In early December, CAIR said the group received 2,171 complaints of anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian hate over the last two months – a 172% increase over same period in the previous year.