Crowds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators packed the streets of Brooklyn on Saturday as they referred to as on the U.S. authorities to cease sending support to Israel.
The march was organized by the Palestinian-led neighborhood group Inside Our Lifetime, and members stretched for a number of blocks as they traveled from the Brooklyn Museum to the Brooklyn Bridge, chanting “Free, free Palestine!”
The demonstration was the most recent in a string of protests round New York Metropolis since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7. Saturday’s march happened a day after Israeli forces started what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel referred to as “the second stage of the battle.”
Waving a Palestinian flag as she marched, Alaa Essafi mentioned that after Israel’s escalated assaults, it felt particularly vital that she journey from her house in New Jersey to assist her “brothers and sisters in Palestine.”
“Collectively we are going to ship a message,” Ms. Essafi, 21, mentioned.
The museum has a big out of doors plaza, and it has been the location of a number of large-scale gatherings, together with a Black Lives Matter demonstration in 2020 that drew greater than 15,000 folks.
Standing outdoors the museum, Hany Barakat, 34, mentioned he had household in Gaza and that some had been killed throughout current airstrikes.
“It has to cease” mentioned Mr. Barakat, who’s Egyptian and lives in New Jersey.
The protest prompted the police to close down a number of blocks of the Jap Parkway. Helicopters and a drone hovered above the group.
The gang waved banners and held indicators that bore messages together with, “We demand a free Palestine” and “Let Gaza Stay.” On the Brooklyn Bridge, just a few folks scaled a steel assist construction and unfurled Palestinian flags, prompting protesters to erupt into chants of, “Gaza! Gaza! Gaza!”
The demonstration started to skinny because it crossed into Manhattan and daylight light. Simply earlier than 7 p.m., as the group streamed by means of SoHo, the Muslim name to prayer echoed by means of the streets and occasion organizers instructed everybody to cease marching to permit time to wish.
The ultimate vacation spot was Union Sq., the place lots of of protesters stopped to beat drums. Some carried indicators that learn, “Assist Palestinian resistance,” whereas others climbed the sq.’s iconic George Washington statue.
Liset Cruz and Michael D. Regan contributed to this story.
