The Wall Street analyst who was fired after he was filmed telling a Jewish American to “go back to your country” while he covered hostage posters with antisemitic signs has given a groveling apology after he and his wife got death threats.
Kurush Mistry and his partner, Shailja Gupta, said their actions were “misguided and thoughtless,” and claimed they never supported Hamas.
“After taking time to contemplate and reflect on our recent actions, we want to send our sincerest apologies to the Jewish gentleman we yelled at, gestured to and said unkind things to, as well as to the global Jewish community for our recent actions in NYC,” Mistry and Gupta said in a statement Friday.
“Our behavior was simply unacceptable, and we are ashamed of our actions and words,” they said, adding: “We hope to have the opportunity to speak to the gentleman personally and apologize directly to him.”
The couple then went on to say, “We have never supported Hamas and have always believed it is a terrorist organization.
“This was our first time engaging in civic protest, and our goal was to emphasize the plight of Palestinian men, women, and children who are dying and suffering in Gaza,” they explained.
“Our way of doing so was misguided and thoughtless.”
“For example, our badly-worded poster was construed to support violence, and we apologize profusely for that.
“We fully acknowledge the pain of the Jewish people in the US, in Israel, and globally, and we regret that our actions added to that pain.”
The couple then noted, “Since the incident, we have both received many death threats.
“We share [this] knowledge not for sympathy, but to factually tell the whole truth.
“We have learned a valuable lesson about the need to love all as brothers and sisters, instead of highlighting disagreements and causing more pain.
“We unequivocally denounce antisemitism, violence, and terrorism in every form,” Mistry and Gupta claimed, before reiterating their apology “to all those we offended and caused pain to, especially the global Jewish community, our fellow Americans, and our fellow Indians.
“We hope that by our future actions and words, we will slowly earn back your trust in our good intentions for all humanity and that you can hopefully see that we are more than our worst actions and mistakes.”
Mike Paul, a spokesman representing the couple, told The Post that since the video went viral, Mistry and Gupta have had to report some “threats of violence” to local law enforcement.”
He also said he “heard in their hearts that they are sorry for what they did,” adding that the couple just was facing “deep frustration” that stories about the “plight of Palestinian men, women and children” were “not being told.”
“That’s where their heart started,” Paul said, noting “even the president of the United States has changed his position from the very beginning only speaking about Israel and the Jewish people” to speaking about what is happening to residents in Gaza.
“He’s realizing there’s clear and consistent evidence to see what’s happening,” Paul said. “Even to say that is controversial.”
But, Paul said, Mistry and Gupta have since “realized it was not presented in the proper way.”
In the viral video, Mistry and Gupta were seen being confronted on the Upper West Side about the flyer that they were taping over the posters, which read: “Israel is an apartheid state and commits genocide.”
“Go live in Israel … go back to your country!” Mistry tells the person confronting them, who replies: “I’m an American. I’m an American Jew.”
Later in the video, Gupta accuses Israelis of being “rapists,” claiming, “I’ve already proved it.”
After the video went viral on social media, Freepoint Commodities, a Stamford, Ct.-based company, released a statement saying it was “aware of the recent antisemitic incident reported on social media, and the individual involved is no longer associated with Freepoint.
“We welcome the diversity of views and opinions held by our employees, but Freepoint does not tolerate discrimination and hate speech directed against any group,” the statement said.
But Paul claims their apology should be taken at face value.
“I think when somebody apologizes for this, it’s less headwork and more heartwork,” he said, adding that when everyone can speak from the heart, “we come together.”
