US State Dept: 'Deeply disturbed' by attack on Sikh driver at JFK airport

New York: The US State Department is deeply disturbed by reports of an attack on an Indian-origin Sikh cab driver at the JFK International Airport and condemned any form of hate-based violence, saying perpetrators of hate crimes should be held accountable for their actions, no matter where such crimes occur.

The Sikh taxi driver was assaulted by an unidentified man, who knocked off his turban and also used expletives against him outside the JFK International Airport here, according to a video on social media.

The undated 26-second video was uploaded by a Twitter user, Navjot Pal Kaur, on the micro-blogging site on January 4, showing a man assaulting the Sikh taxi driver outside the airport. She said the video was shot by a bystander at the airport.

State Department's Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA), in a tweet on Saturday, said: We are deeply disturbed by reports of an apparent attack on a Sikh cab driver at J.F.K. airport, captured on video last week.