J.C. Rice
A Muslim family came under fire this week for brazenly hoisting a Taliban flag outside their Brooklyn home – only to remove the terror symbol after being called out by a local pol and grilled about it by The Post.
Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (R-Brooklyn) posted an online video Tuesday showing herself outside a Brighton Beach home and ripping its occupants for displaying what has been the Afghanistan flag since the Taliban seized control of the country in 2021.
“We have terrorist supporters living amongst us,” says Vernikov in the video, which also shows a Palestinian flag flying below the black-and-white Taliban banner outside the Brighton 5th Street home.
However, a 28-year-old man living at the home claimed later Tuesday his family had no idea the flag was connected to the Taliban, which hosted al-Qaeda and its leader, Osama bin-Laden, in Afghanistan in the years leading up to 9/11.
“We’re not behind any agency or any agenda, or nothing like that. We’re normal, average New Yorkers,” said the man, insisting they raised the banner as a profession of faith all Muslims follow.
However, minutes later, the man’s father and another relative removed both flags, claiming they received death threats over the councilwoman’s post. They said flags previously flew for two months without incident.
Vernikov cheered on the homeowner’s decision to remove the flag and stressed people shouldn’t support terrorism.
“It’s a slap in the face to every American, military member, and otherwise who was murdered under that flag,” Vernikov said.