On the night of November 29th in New York, USA, clashes broke out between antiIsrael protesters and police officers in midtown Manhattan, a block away from the Rockefeller Christmas tree lighting.
The protesters’ intent was to disrupt the Rockefeller Tree lighting ceremony, which was taking place a block away from the original protest site.
AntiIsrael mobs have targeted Christmas lighting ceremonies across the country.
During the protest, which organizers called “Flood Tree Lighting for Gaza,” a protester attempted to tear down an American flag while someone shouted “Allahu Akbar” and “Liberate Palestine.”
A poster with a swastika read “Israeli Military.”
There were also clashes between police and protesters as police tried to set up barriers to keep them out. There were some arrests.
The Instagram pages Within Our Lifetime, with 137,000 followers, and Hidden Palestine, with 315,000 followers, shared the call for protest earlier this week.
The New York Police Department, which has had to deal with numerous protests of this kind in recent days, had already prepared for the demonstration:
“We expect there will be protests across the city on Wednesday including around the tree lighting area and in the coming days and weeks at future gatherings across the city, as we have seen over the last seven weeks. “The NYPD will be on site to protect the tree lighting and everyone in attendance, and we will not tolerate disruption or threats to public safety,” an NYPD spokesperson said in a statement.
New York police had previously arrested protesters at the traditional Macy’s Thanksgiving parade, where two activists attempted to disrupt the parade along 6th Avenue. They wore white jumpsuits with proPalestinian messages. Floats, banners and balloons had to be rerouted.
The New York Public Library was also vandalized during a proPalestinian protest on Thanksgiving. Protesters placed bloodred handprints on the exterior of the iconic Stephen A. Schwarzman Building in Midtown, commonly known as the Main Branch. The spray paint on the facade read “Free Palestine.”