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A group of demonstrators, dressed in keffiyehs and expressing anti-Israel sentiments, took to the streets near a historic synagogue in Manhattan on Tuesday night, sparking confrontations with law enforcement. The protesters repeatedly chanted slogans such as “Israel should not exist” as tensions ran high.
Approximately 100 protesters, brandishing Palestinian flags and rhythmically beating drums, gathered in close proximity to the Park East Synagogue in Manhattan. Their chants of “Palestine will never die” and “Stop the sale of stolen land” echoed through the streets during an event focused on promoting real estate opportunities in Israel and the West Bank, as shown in dramatic video footage.
The synagogue on East 6th Street was secured by police barricades, but the demonstrators attempted to breach the barriers, leading to confrontations with officers. Video footage reveals police officers repeatedly instructing the crowd to “step back” while pushing them back onto the sidewalk, as counter-protesters held their ground nearby.
In response to the protest, Karen Lichtbraun, a co-sponsor of the Zionist group Herut New York City, expressed her views to The Post, dismissing the pro-Palestinian protesters as “a bunch of brainwashed fools.”
“They’re a bunch of brainwashed fools,” Karen Lichtbraun, co-sponsor of Zionist group Herut New York City, told The Post of the pro-Palestine protesters.
“Israel does not occupy anything. It’s the Jewish homeland. And this is all anti Zionism, which is anti semitism, which is Jew hate.”
The 7 p.m. protest was led by the anti-Israel activist group Pal-Awda NY/NJ, which promoted the rally with slogans such as “No settlers on stolen land” and “Stop the sale of stolen Palestinian land.”
The demonstration quickly spilled into another anti-Israel protest at Hunter College, with about 200 rabble-rousers weaving through the streets carrying signs reading “Labeling people as anti-semites cannot justify occupation and brutality” and “Stop the sale of Palestinian Land.”
Police said no arrests have been made, describing the protest as “orderly” and “peaceful.”