Ex-Obama Adviser Targets UES Food Vendor With Islamaphobic Rants

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — A former National Security Council official for the Obama administration is under fire after videos posted on social media showed him using Islamaphobic language to taunt and harass a food cart vendor on the Upper East Side.

Stuart Seldowitz, who worked in the U.S. State Department’s Office of Israel and Palestinian Affairs during Barack Obama's presidency, was captured in multiple videos recorded by someone from inside the halal cart. The videos were shared on social media by a Columbia University student. Seldowitz confirmed it was him in the videos when contacted by CNN.

In one of the videos, Seldowitz accused the vendor of supporting Hamas in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

"You support killing little children," Seldowitz said.

The vendor replied, stating, “You kill children, not me," which prompted Seldowitz to say, "If we killed 4,000 Palestinian children, you know what? It wasn’t enough."

A video also showed Seldowitz asking the food vendor questions, including, “Did you rape your daughter like Muhammad did?" When the vendor told Seldowitz that he didn't speak English, Seldowitz laughed and replied, "That’s why you’re selling food in a food cart, because you’re ignorant."

Seldowitz also made derogatory comments about the prophet Mohammed and ridiculed Islam, which he appeared to believe was the vendor’s religion.

The videos were shared amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. The conflict was triggered by a wide-ranging Hamas attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7 in which the militants killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and captured some 240 men, women and children.

Israel responded with a weekslong air campaign and a ground invasion of northern Gaza, vowing to remove Hamas from power and crush its military capabilities.

More than 11,200 Palestinians have been killed, two-thirds of them women and minors, according to Palestinian health authorities. Another 2,700 have been reported missing, with most believed to be buried under the rubble. The official count does not differentiate between civilian and militant deaths, and Israel says it has killed thousands of militants.

In an interview with the Daily Beast, Seldowitz said he started a conversation with the vendor about current affairs, but the videos only show one side of the story. When asked by the Daily Beast, Seldowitz claimed the vendor instigated the conversation by expressing support for Hamas.

The former official told City & State he regretted the encounters, adding, "But you know, in the heat of the moment, I said things that probably I shouldn’t have said."

The videos prompted some New York City officials to condemn Seldowitz's behavior and also caused Manhattan-based lobbying firm Gotham Government Relations to cut ties with Seldowitz, who served as the organization's foreign affairs chair.

New York City Council Majority Leader Keith Powers, who represents the Upper East Side, released a statement, saying, "This xenophobic and disgusting behavior has no place on the Upper East Side or New York City."

He added, "No one should be harassed because of their religion or identity."

Assembly Member Alex Bores visited the halal cart Tuesday night to show support for the vendor.

"Hate has no home on the UES. I visited the vendor that has been harassed & gave him my # in case (Seldowitz) comes back," Bores wrote in a post on X. "He showed me texts from neighbors supporting him & offering to come down if he feels threatened again."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.