CNN host Abby Phillip issued an on-air correction Wednesday night after initially claiming that an ISIS-inspired bombing attempt in New York City last weekend had targeted the city’s Muslim mayor.

“This morning I issued a correction first thing in the morning on X for a mistake that I made in last night’s show, but I also wanted to do so on air as well,” she said. “I incorrectly said that the bombs that were thrown by ISIS-inspired suspects in New York over the weekend were directed at Mayor Mamdani. They were not.”

Phillip added that she had failed to catch the error during the broadcast and took full responsibility for the misstatement.

“And while we do make mistakes, it is important to acknowledge and correct those errors when they happen,” she told viewers.

The clarification followed a wave of criticism online after Phillip’s remarks spread widely on social media.

The attempted bombing occurred Saturday near the residence of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Authorities say two suspects threw improvised explosive devices during demonstrations taking place near the mayor’s home. Law enforcement officials have said the devices were directed toward protesters and police in the area, not at Mamdani himself.

During Phillip’s program Tuesday night, the claim was repeated by CNN political commentator Ana Navarro before being challenged on air by Republican panelist Joe Borelli.

“To be clear, the attack wasn’t on Mayor Mamdani,” Borelli said during the discussion. “It was attacking protesters, people protesting Mamdani.”

The confusion was compounded by another misstatement from Edward-Isaac Dovere, who posted on X that Mamdani had been a “target of political violence.” Dovere later deleted the post and issued a correction acknowledging that law enforcement officials had not identified the mayor as the intended target.

“I want to correct something I posted earlier on X, which inaccurately implied that Mayor Mamdani was the target of political violence,” Dovere wrote, adding that the original post had been removed.

The network had already faced criticism over its initial social media coverage of the incident. An earlier CNN post describing the suspects as teenagers who might have otherwise spent a normal day enjoying unusually warm weather in New York drew backlash for appearing to downplay the seriousness of the attack.

CNN later deleted the post and acknowledged it failed to reflect the gravity of the situation, saying it violated the network’s editorial standards.

According to federal authorities, the suspects — identified as 18-year-old Emir Balat and 19-year-old Ibrahim Kayumi — both residents of Pennsylvania and U.S. citizens, have been charged with providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction.

Prosecutors allege the pair threw homemade explosive devices toward law enforcement officers and demonstrators gathered outside Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s official residence, during protests connected to Mamdani.

Authorities say the suspects were inspired by ISIS ideology.

The devices did not detonate, and the suspects were quickly taken into custody. The case remains under investigation as federal officials continue examining the circumstances surrounding the attempted attack.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)