Cookie box with Arabic inscription causes bomb scare in US

Certain things pair really well with cookies — like milk, for example — but Islamaphobia is not one of them

Pennsylvania Police were called on Monday to a gas station after a customer panicked at the sight of a box with Arabic inscription.

The box created a bomb scare leading to a temporary closure of the gas station as well as a nearby nursery. The supposedly suspicious box turned out to just be a box of Halwani Bros Maamoul Date Filled Cookies — something easily purchased on Amazon.



While the cookie box did feature some Arabic script, it also featured plenty of words written in English. The label clearly stated in English that the package contains "date filled cookies." Still, the call resulted in the arrival of three police cars and the bomb squad unit to the gas station.

This cookie box was left at a pump at Gulf Station near E. Stroudsburg. Bomb squad was called to check it. @WNEP pic.twitter.com/qN9tJofLpn

— Carmella Mataloni (@Carmella_News) September 19, 2016

The incident took place just days after an explosion in New York City, leaving nearby areas on high alert. The explosion in New York’s upscale and bustling Chelsea neighborhood had injured at least 29 people on September 17. The cause of the explosion was not immediately clear, but local media reports suggested that it had ocurred in a dumpster.



Witnesses living three blocks away told AFP they heard a large boom from their fifth floor apartment, followed by quiet, then the sound of sirens.

Chelsea is one of the most fashionable districts of Manhattan, packed with bars, restaurants and luxury apartments that would be crowded in the weekend. “There was an explosion earlier tonight at around 8:00pm (0000 GMT), several people injured,” a police spokesperson told AFP.

The blast happened on 23rd Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in Manhattan. The fire department said 29 injures were confirmed at 113 West 23rd Street. “None appear to be life-threatening at this time,” the department tweeted.

This story originally appeared on Food and Wine.