Man convicted in Vermont shooting of three Palestinian students amid rising Islamophobia

A Vermont man, Jason Eaton, has been found guilty of attempted second-degree murder in the 2023 shooting of three Palestinian college students. The jury delivered the verdict on September 21, 2026, rejecting Eaton's insanity defense. Eaton's legal team had argued he believed he was acting under orders from U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies, transmitted via FM radio, and that God had commanded him to protect his Jewish neighbors.

The shooting occurred on November 25, 2023, near the University of Vermont campus in Burlington, where Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Aliahmad, and Kinnan Abdalhamid were walking. All three were 20 years old at the time, and some were wearing traditional Palestinian keffiyeh scarves. Awartani was paralyzed from the waist down, while Aliahmad and Abdalhamid also sustained injuries.

Eaton now faces a potential sentence of up to life in prison, with sentencing details yet to be scheduled. While no hate crime charges were officially filed, the victims' families have asserted that the incident was motivated by prejudice.