Up to 100 protesters were arrested at a pro-Palestine demonstration outside Jewish Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer’s home in Brooklyn.
Demonstrators called for an end to US aid to Israel on a day of mass protests in New York and around the world after the Hamas leader called for a global “day of outrage”.
Organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, hundreds of people gathered at Grand Army Plaza before marching a short distance to the senator’s Park Slope residence and blocking the street.
After blocking the flow of traffic, protesters were arrested on the street and bundled onto two MTA buses.
The demonstration comes as Schumer prepares to leave for Israel this weekend, where he will lead a delegation of senators to show his support for the country’s government, a spokesman announced Friday.
After blocking the flow of traffic, protesters were arrested on the street and bundled onto two MTA buses
The protest came as Senator Chuck Schumer prepared to leave for Israel this weekend, where he will lead a delegation of senators to show his support for the country’s government
An NYPD spokesman said a total number of arrests from the demonstrations would not be available until later this weekend
Some protesters were seen holding signs reading “Zionism is terrorism” and “End Israeli apartheid.”
Others held a banner that read, “Jews say: Stop the genocide of Palestinians.”
An NYPD spokesman said a total number of arrests from the demonstrations would not be available until later this weekend.
President Joe Biden spent about 45 minutes on Friday speaking to the families of missing Americans in Israel, CNN reported.
The father of missing American Sagui Dekel-Chen told the outlet: “As an American citizen, as an Israeli citizen, as someone whose beloved son, we are sure, is being held alive, dead, wounded, we don’t know, I could “Don’t.” “Maybe demand more than President Biden has expressed about the United States’ commitment to getting these people back.”
Dekel-Chen said that while Biden couldn’t give much information, the president’s “willingness to listen” was “extraordinary.”
Earlier Friday, pro-Palestinian demonstrators chanted “resistance is justified” as they gathered in Times Square for a large anti-Israel protest.
The crowd, many of whom covered their faces, marched from Baruch College to Times Square to protest at 3 p.m., where they joined a larger group and encountered a smaller number of Jewish counter-protesters.
“Resistance is justified when people are occupied!” They chanted, calling the Israelis “settlers” and calling on them to “return home.”
“If we don’t get justice, then they won’t get peace!” sang one of the organizers.
Two people – a Palestinian protester and a Jew – were arrested for fighting at the scene. At 5 p.m., the crowd is expected to leave Times Square to march to the Israeli Consulate.
The NYPD closed East 42nd Street to 5th Avenue and rerouted traffic, NBC reported.
Protesters were arrested at a pro-Palestine demonstration outside Senator Chuck Schumer’s home in Brooklyn
Pro-Palestine protesters are seen in New York City on Friday
Muslims are seen praying at a pro-Palestine rally in New York City on Friday
Palestinian protesters gather in Times Square on October 13, 2023 in New York City in response to the war between Hamas and Israel
A woman marches through Times Square with a “Free Palestine” sign on Friday afternoon
Pro-Palestine protesters gather in New York City to begin a march toward Times Square on Friday the 13th. The city is on heightened alert after a former Hamas leader called for a global day of “jihad.”
Crowds gather in Times Square on Friday for a pro-Palestine rally. Tensions in New York City escalated throughout the day as the conflict in Israel intensified
New Yorkers were also notified of disturbances around Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, near Prospect Park.
There is a huge police presence on site, with National Guardsmen also standing by in case the protest escalates into violence, as happened in other European cities earlier in the day.
Israel has strongly warned Palestinians to evacuate Gaza within 24 hours before proceeding with a ground attack.
Every uniformed NYPD officer on the force – some 33,000 – was called to active duty for the day as fears of an attack or unrest grew. Officers stand guard outside yeshivas and synagogues to provide protection for the Jewish community, many of whom held back Friday for fear of violence.
In Chicago, police have increased their presence around synagogues and Jewish schools following a bomb threat earlier this week. White House officials insist there is no specific domestic threat but say police and intelligence agencies will remain on high alert.
In France, a teacher was killed and others injured in a suspected terrorist knife attack.
Lt. Randy Sutton, a 34-year police veteran and founder of The Wounded Blue, an organization that helps officers injured in the line of duty, told the threat was unprecedented.
“There’s a lot of risk right now.” We have cities not just in the U.S. but around the world that are facing something that we’ve essentially never faced before.
Palestine supporters attend a rally in New York City on October 13, 2023. The protesters were escorted by NYPD officers on mopeds
Hundreds flocked to Times Square today to take part in the protest, the largest in New York City
A small group of Israeli counter-protesters showed up to confront the pro-Palestinian group. They were separated by a street and held back by NYPD officers
Israeli counter-protesters clashed with pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Times Square on Friday
Protesters’ demands included that the US cut aid to Israel and continue the “resistance.”
NYPD officers monitor the crowd in Times Square on Friday as hundreds of anti-Israel protesters took to the streets
Among the demonstrators were some Jews who called for an end to the “genocide” of Palestine
A counter-protester in support of Israel was arrested at Baruch College after arguing with another man there
The arrested pro-Palestinian demonstrator can be seen being handcuffed. He fought with a pro-Israel counter-protester
Pro-Palestine protesters gather in Manhattan on Friday ahead of a planned rally in Times Square
A protester carries a sign calling for an end to “Israeli apartheid” on Friday, October 13th
Protesters prayed before marching toward Times Square on Friday afternoon
The majority of protesters are young students who attend CUNY schools across the city. Many covered their faces before the rally
Students carry signs reading SHAME ON CUNY (City University of New York) and “Palestine Will Never Die” outside Baruch College in Manhattan this afternoon
Anti-Israel protesters with Starbucks stand in front of a Palestinian flag in the early hours of a protest in New York on Friday
A young Muslim man prays before a pro-Palestine demonstration in New York City on Friday afternoon
“A call from a terrorist organization effectively attacked the country of Israel. Now they are trying to use this attack to threaten the rest of the world. The unfortunate reality is due to mass migrations not only in Europe but also around the world.” “We are now at incredible risk of violence taking place,” he said.
Although local officials said there was no “specific” threat to any individual city, Lt. Sutton said the call for a “global day of rage” or jihad was specific enough.
“There are concrete threats. There is no doubt about it. When there are calls for jihad around the world, that is a real threat.
Dozens of NYPD officers listen to a press conference ahead of a planned pro-Palestinian protest in Times Square. Every uniformed officer in the force was called to duty today
NYPD officers gather on 42nd Street for a meeting ahead of planned pro-Palestine protests in Manhattan
An Israeli flag is displayed in New York’s Times Square on Friday ahead of pro-Palestinian protests this afternoon
The National Guard provides security at Grand Central Station in Manhattan, New York. October 13, 2023 after being placed on alert to assist the NYPD
An NYPD officer was stationed outside a synagogue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn on Friday the 13th
A member of the New York Police Department patrols outside the Congregation Bais Yaakov Nechamia Dsatmar synagogue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Police presence at Temple Emanuel on the Upper East Side in New York City
“We’ve seen hordes of people spitting on police officers and inciting violence… when there’s a mob mentality, like in the looting that’s taken place in American cities, then religion is involved… we didn’t see that.” just the acceptance of these brutal bloody massacres, but also the support of thousands of people around the world for them.
“If you can accept this kind of violence — insane, irrational violence — then you have put every citizen in our country and around the world at risk.”
In Baghdad, tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered peacefully to protest, while others burned Israeli flags in Malaysia.
Several pro-Palestine rallies are planned for today in New York City, the largest of which will take place in Times Square this afternoon.
Security alerts were received in nearby office buildings about the protest.
A police officer with a dog patrols the grounds of the US Capitol
U.S. Capitol Police secure the U.S. Capitol in response to a “Day of Rage” call on October 13, 2023
Mayor Eric Adams insists there is no specific threat
“Every member of the New York Police Department will be ready and in uniform tomorrow,” NYPD Chief John Chell told reporters last night before the event.
“We will not tolerate hatred and disorder, it will be suppressed quickly and we will be ready.”
Hochul said the New York National Guard has already been ordered to patrol major transportation hubs.
Across the country, the Los Angeles Police Department issued a statement saying its officers would be paying more attention to Jewish and Muslim communities “during this unimaginable time.”
Federal law enforcement agencies were also on alert.
Increased police presence outside the Barclays Center ahead of a preseason game between the Brooklyn Nets and Maccabi Ra’anana
Police patrol a Brooklyn neighborhood with a large Orthodox Jewish community on October 12, 2023 in New York City. Across New York City and much of the country, security has increased around synagogues and other Jewish cultural institutions following last weekend’s Hamas attacks in Israel
“The FBI is aware of open source reports of calls for global action on Friday, October 13, that could lead to demonstrations in communities across the United States,” the agency said in a statement.
“The FBI urges the public to remain vigilant.”
At least one Arab American advocacy group pointed to a more hostile attitude by U.S. law enforcement toward Muslim groups than toward Jews.
The Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee said Thursday that FBI agents had visited a number of mosques in various states and individual U.S. citizens with Palestinian roots, calling it a “disturbing trend.”
“We received several calls today regarding Palestinian nationals detained by ICE and/or visited by the FBI,” the organization’s national executive director, Abed Ayoub, said on X, formerly called Twitter.
BERLIN: A pro-Palestinian protester is arrested during a protest rally
PARIS: Clashes between protesters and police in Paris
PAKISTAN: Protesters burn the flags of Israel (right) and the US (left) during a rally to express solidarity with Palestinians in Islamabad
Rabbi Yoni Fein, who runs Brauser Maimonides Academy, a large Jewish day school in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said that “there is definitely heightened alert for operations” in anticipation of Friday’s global protests.
He said the FBI, U.S. Homeland Security officials and other federal agencies have held online security webinars with Jewish institutions across the country.
But Fein said the school wanted to reassure students that they were safe and could move on with their lives.
Rather than giving in to the heightened concern that Fein said surrounds the Jewish community, he said the academy’s message to its students and their families is to reassure them that “their homes are safe, their schools are safe and that their trusted adults Keep them safe.’
IRAQ: Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Baghdad today