Rye , New York ( CNN ) -- What was meant to be a celebration marking the end of Ramadan turned into a melee at an amusement park on Tuesday when a group of Muslim women were told they were n't allowed on certain rides with their headscarves . Rye Playland was full of visitors celebrating Eid al-Fitr when the festive mood turned angry . Westchester County Police said the women wearing the hijab , a traditional Muslim headscarf , became argumentative when park employees enforced the no-headgear policy and men sprang to their defense . `` ( The rule ) did n't get relayed to the people who attended , so some people got upset , '' said Westchester County Police Capt . Thomas Gleason . Fifteen people were arrested and two charged with felony assault after two park rangers sustained minor injuries . Among those arrested were three women wearing the hijab . Police shut down the park for several hours during the incident . `` It had to do with headgear . People -- patrons -- are not allowed to wear headgear on rides for safety reasons , '' Gleason said . Zead Ramadan , spokesman for the New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations ( CAIR ) , said members of the Muslim American Society who had organized the outing asked him to come to the park to mediate . Ramadan said the women felt they had been targeted by park employees because of their religious views . `` They 're the most obvious Muslims around because they have hijabs on . They felt they were discriminated against , '' Ramadan said . `` Maybe there was a level of frustration that went around across the board , '' Ramadan said . `` Then you have the parks people who are trying to explain this and do their job . '' Ramadan said he saw a cell-phone video showing police `` yanking a hijabi-wearing woman out of the crowd . '' `` She was very small . They turn her around and throw her down on the ground . '' Ramadan said that 's when the crowd got very angry . `` Nobody was assaulted prior to the police being called , and that in itself is a problem , '' Ramadan said . Gleason said he was aware `` there was some cell-phone footage and maybe some video , '' `` There 's no official video that we have released at this time , '' he said . `` There are some videos in the park that we 're retaining for our own information . '' Gleason said he had seen seen `` bits and pieces '' of phone footage from the incident . He said park officials told the Muslim organizers about the headgear ban but that information was n't relayed to the group of visitors . Ramadan chalked the whole incident up to `` miscommunication . '' `` The women felt they were being targeted , but in fact these were safety precautions , '' he said . `` And maybe ( the park ) did n't do the best job in disclosing those precautions . '' But Westchester County Parks Deputy Commissioner Peter Tartaglia says the policy was made abundantly clear to the group 's organizer , and that the rules are clearly posted . `` We repeatedly told him , because we knew this group would have religious headgear , '' Tartaglia insisted adding that a refund booth was set up in case anyone objected to the policy , which he said is posted prominently in the park . `` There 's a sign at every ride , '' Tartaglia said . `` When you enter the park , there 's a height line and it lists headgear policy . `` What triggered the incident was fighting within the group and the subject was why they did n't know the policy , '' said Tartaglia , adding that he arrived at the scene about 20 minutes after the fight broke out . He said police were called when it appeared the altercation could lead to a riot . Ride safety precautions posted on its website include the following safety rule : . `` Hats must be secured , and jackets/sweaters must be worn properly and not around the waist while on a ride . Some rides do not allow backpacks , purses or head gear of any kind . '' Rye Playland , also known as Playland Amusement Park , is located about 17 miles northeast of the Bronx in Westchester County .
Muslims were celebrating Eid al-Fitr ; women were wearing the hijab . Rye Playland employees sought to enforce headgear ban on park rides . Comment: CAIR official says women felt they were being discriminated against .