This undated photo provided on Mon., Oct. 16, 2023, by the Chicago chapter of the Council On American Islamic Relations, shows Wadea Al-Fayoume. (CAIR-Chicago via AP)

JOLIET, Ill. (AP) — A man accused of murder, attempted murder and a hate crime in anattack on a Palestinian-American woman and her sonwas indicted Thursday by an Illinois grand jury.

The eight-count indictment against Joseph Czuba, 71, tracks the charges that were filed soon after the fatal stabbing of Wadea Al-Fayoume, 6, and the wounding of Hanaan Shahin on Oct. 14. Authorities said the victims were targeted because of their Muslim faith.

Shahin told police that Czuba, her landlord in Plainfield in Will County, was upset over theIsrael-Hamas warand attacked them after she had urged him to “pray for peace.”

Shahin, 32, is recovering from multiple stab wounds.Hundreds of peopleattended her son’s funeral on Oct. 16.

The murder charge in the indictment against Czuba describes the boy’s death as the result of “exceptionally brutal or heinous behavior.”

Defense attorney George Lenard has said he won’t comment on the case outside court. Czuba, who is in jail, is expected to return to court Monday in Joliet, 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Chicago.

Earlier this week, Shahin issued a statement through the Chicago chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. She asked the public to “pray for peace” and said her son was her best friend.

The stabbings are part ofrising hostilityagainst Muslims and Palestinians in the U.S. since Hamas attacked Israel. Elsewhere in Illinois, a Chicago-area man was charged with a hate crime in an assault against two Muslims, and an Islamic day school canceled class after receiving threats.