Authorities investigate explosives thrown near NYC mayor's residence as 'ISIS-related terrorism'

NEW YORK (AP) — Two men suspected of bringing explosives to a protest outside New York City's mayoral mansion were in custody Monday, as authorities probed whether the suspects were inspired by the Islamic State extremist group, the police commissioner said.

No charges had yet been brought against the men, Emir Balat and Ibrahim Nikk, but federal prosecutors and police planned a news conference later in the day. In the meantime, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a morning news conference that the explosives episode "is being investigated as an act of ISIS-inspired terrorism,” using an acronym for the Islamic State group.

Meanwhile, police searched a home in northeastern Pennsylvania's Middletown Township, and a separate federal investigation was underway in nearby Newtown, local police said. Both inquiries were related to the incident outside New York's mayoral residence, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Pennsylvania Republican, wrote in a social media post Sunday.

The homemade devices, which did not explode, were hurled Saturday during raucous counterprotests against an anti-Islamic demonstration led by Jake Lang, a far-right activist and critic of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat and the first Muslim to hold the office. Mamdani and his wife weren't at the house, called Gracie Mansion, at the time.

Speaking outside the residence Monday morning, Mamdani said Balat and Nikk “traveled from Pennsylvania and attempted to bring violence to New York City.”

It wasn't immediately clear whether 18-year-old Balat or 19-year-old Nikk have attorneys who can speak to the accusations. Attempts to reach their families were not immediately successful.

Tisch said there are no indications that the men's alleged activities were connected to the ongoing war in Iran. She declined to say more about why authorities believe the suspects were motivated by the Islamic State group, a Sunni extremist group. Iran’s population is almost entirely Shiite, the other main religious community within Islam.

While Mamdani and Tisch briefed reporters Monday, Lang heckled from outside the Gracie Mansion gates.

Lang's sparsely attended protest Saturday drew a far larger group of counterdemonstrators, including one person who police say tossed a smoking object containing nuts, bolts, screws and a “hobby fuse” into the crowd.

The device extinguished itself steps from police officers, Tisch noted. The same person who threw it then dropped a second device that did not appear to ignite, the commissioner said.

The scene had grown chaotic even before the devices were thrown. Police said one person involved in the anti-Islam protest, Ian McGinnis, 21, was arrested after pepper-spraying counterprotesters. A message seeking comment was left for an attorney for McGinnis.

Three others were taken into custody but were released without charges.

After the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, Lang was charged with assaulting an officer with a baseball bat, civil disorder and other crimes. He was later freed from prison as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping act of clemency. Lang recently announced that he is running for U.S. Senate in Florida.

Earlier this year, he organized a rally in Minneapolis in support of Trump’s immigration crackdown, drawing an angry crowd of counterprotesters who quickly chased him away.

Associated Press reporters Jennifer Peltz in New York and David Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, left, walks out of Gracie Mansion with New York Police commissioner Jessica Tisch, second from left, to make an address at a news conference, Monday, March 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

New York Police commissioner Jessica Tisch speaks during a news conference with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani at Gracie Mansion, Monday, March 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

Jake Lang demonstrates outside Gracie Mansion after a news conference by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani , Monday, March 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

In this image taken from video, law enforcement officers respond to Manhattan's Upper East Side as New York City's police said they had identified a "suspicious device in a vehicle,” Sunday, March 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Joseph B. Frederick)

Jake Lang shouts from a sidewalk as New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks during a news conference at Gracie Mansion, Monday, March 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

New York Police commissioner Jessica Tisch speaks during a news conference with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani at Gracie Mansion, Monday, March 9, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis)

LONDON (AP) — To have and to hold took on a new meaning for about two dozen couples who put their relationships to the test on a grassy hill in southern England.

Wives and girlfriends clung on for dear life as their partners carried them up and down a hillside for the U.K. Wife Carrying Race, one of the country's quirkiest annual sports events.

On Sunday, Teemu Touvinen and Jatta Leinonen from Finland were crowned the winners at 1 minute and 45 seconds. Their prize? A barrel of local ale.

The awkward footrace in Dorking, Surrey is said to be inspired by a 19th-century Finnish legend about a gang that pillages villages and steals the women.

These days the emphasis is on lighthearted fun. Silly costumes are encouraged, and racers can be males or females carrying anyone over 18 and weighing at least 50 kilograms (110 pounds.) Those under that weight need to wear a rucksack filled with flour or water to bring them to the minimum weight.

“You do not have to carry your own wife. It could be someone else’s. Or a mate, girlfriend, boyfriend, sister or brother,” organizers said. “They should ideally weigh less than you do.”

Couples can choose their carrying technique, though most contestants favored the traditional “Estonian Hold,” where the “wife” hangs upside-down on the carrier’s back with their legs crossed in front of his face.

Contestants raced up a gently sloping hillside and back down, clearing obstacles like low rows of hay bales and having buckets of water thrown at them for good measure. The course is 380 meters (416 yards) long — “a long way under the circumstances,” organizers noted.

While still niche, the Scandinavian sport has a following in the U.K., United States, Australia, Poland and other countries. The race in England first started in 2008.

The fastest British couple, Edward Nash and Kathryn Knight, who came just 4 seconds behind the winners, will represent the U.K. at the World Wife Carrying Championships in Finland in July.

People take part in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race in Dorking, England, Sunday March 8, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

People take part in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race in Dorking, England, Sunday March 8, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

People take part in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race in Dorking, England, Sunday March 8, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

People take part in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race in Dorking, England, Sunday March 8, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

People take part in the annual UK Wife Carrying Race in Dorking, England, Sunday March 8, 2026. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)