Members of the 'Rise of the Moors – The Moorish American Arms' on Saturday, shut down the Interstate 95, in Wakefield, a city about 14 miles north of Boston. The 9-hour standoff with police started after 1 a.m. after the group refused to comply with police orders.
According to Massachusetts State Police, a trooper saw two cars on the side of the I-95 at about 1:30 a.m. with hazard lights on, attempting to add gas to their tanks.
When the officer stopped to assist, they noticed the men were wearing military gear and had a lot of guns. The trooper asked for driver’s licenses and gun licenses but the men allegedly refused to provide any, and refused to put down their weapons. The trooper called for backup but some of the men fled, police said. In the vehicles were about 10 people wearing military style clothes and carrying rifles and pistols.
Mason said in a 7 a.m. news conference, "We're committed to a negotiation with them, having a conversation, we're going to utilize time. Time is our ally in this."
Eleven members of the group were arrested at the end of the standoff at around 10 a.m.
Parts of the encounter were livestreamed by one group member named Jamhal Talib Abdullah, who is identified on the group’s website as Moorish American Consular Post Head. According to the site, Rise of the Moors is a group that believes various groups including Black people, native Americans, and other people of colour are part “one people” known as the Moors, descended from ancient African mariners, who now constitute a “non-self-governing nation” that is “under the occupation power of the de facto United States Corporation”.
Many left-wing media outlets tried their best to obscure the racial identity of the militia group. Jerusalem Post went as far as using a stock picture of random white militiamen. The left-wing website was promptly called out online by many critics.