The Hanukkah stabbing in Monsey has caught the attention of the country's top law enforcement official.

Attorney General William Barr met with Jewish leaders in Brooklyn Tuesday, promising the federal government will fight the recent uptick in hate crimes across the area.
Those in the room, like Rabbi Eli Cohen of the Crown Heights JCC, say the attorney general vowed the feds will continue to investigate the Monsey stabbing on Hanukkah. The attorney general is also looking into another stabbing in Monsey in November that remains unsolved.

While no one from outside the city was at the meeting, Rabbi Yisroel Kahan says the event has big implications for the entire area.

“Would it have been nice to have it here in Rockland? OK, but the point is, he's here, it has his attention, he's issued directives, and we're grateful,” he says.

Among the directives issued by Barr was that all U.S. Attorney General's Office’s across the country must have points of contacts in their local Jewish communities to facilitate the opportunity for hate-crime reporting.

Barr also spoke during the meeting about the importance religious freedom in schools and that religious schools should have control over their own curriculum.

According to those who were there, the attorney general's meeting was with Jewish leaders only. No politicians were invited to attend.