Ed Victor had just finished the Run for Their Lives walk and was with group members gathering outside the Boulder, Colorado, courthouse on Sunday afternoon when he said he heard a crash, felt heat -- and then saw a woman on fire.

       “My focus got extremely narrow at that time. I didn’t notice anything else," Victor said at a news conference Wednesday with political and faith leaders outside the courthouse.

       "I was worried about that woman," he said, "and I’ll tell you, when someone is on fire, it takes too long to put them out."

       Victor said he and the other walk participants frantically looked around for what they had to help extinguish the flames: flags and a banner.

       Fifteen people ranging in age from 25 to 88 years old were hurt in the Molotov cocktail attack, prosecutors said.

       Some victims were "very seriously burned," Rabbi Mark Soloway said at the news conference. Three victims remain in the hospital in serious condition Wednesday, sources briefed on the investigation told ABC News.

       Naor Bitton, visiting from Israel, was walking in Boulder when he saw the demonstrators and joined them in a show of support.

       Soon Bitton saw a "huge ball of flames" engulfing several people, including an 88-year-old Holocaust survivor, he told ABC News.

       Bitton said he ran back and forth between the fire and passersby to gather as much water as he could until the blaze on the 88-year-old could be extinguished, which took several minutes.

       A crowd then started to gather at the scene, but "there was still active spots of fire" and "the attacker still had two bottles of gasoline in his hands," Bitton said. "I figured if someone gets too close to him, he might throw the bottles," hurting more people.

       The suspect chanted "Free Palestine" and "I did it and I’ll do it again," Bitton recalled.

       "I made my way to the head of the crowd, trying to create enough space between him and the crowd, pushing away people who tried to get near him and keeping my eyes on him" until police arrived, Bitton said.

       The injured 88-year-old has since been released from the hospital.

       The suspect, 45-year-old Mohamed Soliman, was arrested at the scene and has been charged with a federal hate crime and state charges, including 16 counts of attempted first-degree murder, officials said.

       Soliman allegedly said he intentionally targeted Run for Their Lives, a peaceful group comprised of Jews and non-Jews who participate in weekly walks to raise awareness about the hostages in Gaza, according to court documents.

       Soliman told police "he wanted to kill all Zionist people," court documents said.

       He "said this had nothing to do with the Jewish community and was specific in the Zionist group supporting the killings of people on his land (Palestine)," documents said.

       Political and faith leaders strongly condemned the attack at Wednesday's news conference.

       "Antisemitism, violence and hate have no home in Colorado," Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said. "We will not be silenced or scared. We will not let the demons of hate define us."

       "The whole Jewish community is reeling, shocked that this hideous hate crime could happen right here in downtown, beautiful Boulder, Colorado," Soloway said. "And yet, we have seen this coming ... Jews here and all over America and all over the world have not been feeling safe."

       The Boulder attack comes at a time of heightened violence against the Jewish community.

       In April, a suspected arsonist firebombed Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's official residence because of "what [the governor] wants to do to the Palestinian people," according to a search warrant signed by Pennsylvania State Police. The suspect was arrested.

       On May 21, two Israeli Embassy staff members were killed as they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. When the suspect was arrested, he began to chant, "free, free Palestine," according to police.

       Two days after the D.C. attack, the Department of Homeland Security warned in a bulletin that the Israel-Hamas conflict "continues to inspire violence and could spur radicalization or mobilization to violence against targets perceived as supporting Israel."

       The Anti-Defamation League has documented a dramatic rise in acts of hate targeting Jewish people in the U.S. since the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel. In 2024, the ADL said it recorded a record high of 9,354 antisemitic incidents in the U.S., marking a 344% increase over the past five years and a 893% increase over the past 10 years.

       "I am angry," Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the ADL, said at Wednesday's news conference.

       “It’s way past time for our political leaders, community groups, media outlets, tech platforms, faith leaders to take action before more Jewish blood is spilled. And it's way past time to stop excusing antisemitic rhetoric," he said.

       Greenblatt urged the public to speak out against hate, sharing small, specific actions people can take.

       "Flag a hateful post, sign a petition, attend a service, make a comment in city council," he said.

       Soliman appeared in court virtually on Monday. He has yet to enter a plea. He'll return to court Thursday on the state charges.

       ABC News' Jeff Cook and Trevor Ault contributed to this report.