An American Muslim advocacy group has revealed the shocking details of an attack on three Afghan school children which left one hospitalised in Houston, Texas.
The Houston chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Houston) shared the shocking story of a hijab wearing student being viciously beaten along with her friends by fellow students at Paul Revere Middle School on March 3, 2025.
On top of publicising the incident, CAIR-Houston also called on the Houston Independent School District (HISD) to take “urgent and transparent action” following the alleged violent targeting of the three Afghan girls.
In a testimony released on CAIR-Houston’s website, the families involved allege that the girls were sitting at their lunch table when they were “surrounded and physically assaulted by at least 20 students.”
The attackers reportedly used pencils to stab the girls during the violent assault.
One student was reportedly beaten so severely that she became unresponsive to teachers and was taken to Texas Children’s Hospital in the Medical Center, where she remained for four days.
She is now required to wear a neck brace and continues to “suffer both physical and emotional trauma from the assault.”
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According to CAIR-Houston, Paul Revere Middle School has failed to respond to multiple requests from the victims’ families and their representatives to meet regarding the incident or to accommodate their request to transfer the girls to a safer environment.
The director of CAIR-Houston William White reportedly condemned the middle schools handling of the affair “absolutely unacceptable.”
“It is absolutely unacceptable for any student to be allegedly violently assaulted and then abandoned by the very institution that is supposed to protect them.These students came to this country in search of safety and stability—what they endured instead is a complete failure of accountability and compassion. HISD must act immediately to ensure their safety, support their healing, hold the students responsible accountable, and send a clear message that violence and bias will not be tolerated in our schools.”
Footage of the alleged attack has been shared on social media including on the CAIR-Houston YouTube page.
The footage shows a large group of students throwing fists and kicks. In the video you can see what appears to be a staff member attempting to break up the fight.
Another prominent Muslim voice to express outrage over the story is doctor Yasir Qadhi, the dean of The Islamic Seminary of America, who placed blame for the attack on far-right hate in a post shared on X.
“Hate has consequences. All of the anti-Muslim bigotry being spread by the far right in Texas for the last few weeks is not only slanderous, it is dangerous.”
Dr. Qadhi also revealed another similar incident which saw a hijab wearing student allegedly attacked in Connecticut.
“This isn’t the only instance of such hate – in Connecticut another high school hijabi was attacked by her fellow students. Adults who lie about other faiths and fear-monger should also be held accountable.
The only reason a child will absorb such irrational hatred is if s/he is absorbing it from her own home. The brutal irony of the far right and Islamophobes accusing us of being ‘terrorists’ while their hatred and rhetoric is what causes actual terrorism is not lost on us. The same tactic here, and the same tactic in Israel and Gaza.”
Houston City Council Member Letitia Plummer was quoted in American news calling the incident “distressing” and called on HISD to “take decisive action to ensure the safety of all students and to send a clear message that such behaviour is unacceptable.”
In a response, a Houston Independent School District spokesperson says a victim in the incident was offered a school transfer, and that the “seven aggressors” received disciplinary consequences “aligned with the district’s code of conduct.”
Read the full response below:
“HISD takes the safety of all students very seriously, and the images of this incident do not meet the standards we expect of our students. While some of the details shared in CAIR’s press release do not match the facts of the investigation, the district shares CAIR’s belief that the incident warranted both consequences for the aggressors and care for the victim. The seven aggressors in the incident received disciplinary consequences aligned with the district’s code of conduct. The victim in the incident has been offered a school transfer, which is currently in process. The school staff met with the family on March 6th to discuss their concerns. School staff explained that consequences were issued immediately based on the HISD Code of Conduct, and advised the parents of their right to press criminal/assault charges against the students who assaulted their daughter.”
