In response to Israel’s military operation, known as Operation Protective Edge, to defend its citizens against the hundreds of rockets being fired by Hamas, anti-Israel rallies invoking extreme rhetoric have been taking place across New York City.
Click here to learn more about the current Israel/Hamas Conflict.
On July 15th, hundreds of protesters turned out in the pouring rain to hold a demonstration against Israel outside the United Nations.
The protest featured numerous signs comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, including those that read, “It Wasn’t OK in Nazi Germany, Why is it OK in Palestine,” “One Holocaust Does not Justify Another” and “UN Must Stop Muslim Holocaust in Gaza.” One sign read, “Spot the Difference” and featured a picture of Hitler and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Comparing Israel’s defensive actions in the past week and a half, which have resulted in the deaths of approximately 200 Gazans, to the genocidal murder of ten million people, including six million Jews, is simply outrageous.
One day earlier, twenty protesters showed up at a pro-Israel press conference carrying signs that stated “New Yorkers Stand With Gaza Against Israeli Genocide,” “Israel = Ku Klux Klan,” and “Palestinians are Freedom Fighters.” As speakers from the press conference, including elected officials, attempted to deliver their speeches, the protesters led chants of “Stop bombing Gaza now” and “Free, free Palestine!” to the point where the speakers could not be heard clearly.
Last Friday, July 11th, several hundred protesters attended an anti-Israel rally at Union Square in New York City on Friday with signs that called for the destruction of Israel and compared Israel to Nazi Germany. The rally, which was sponsored by Adalah-NY, brought out protesters who held signs stating that “All of Israel is Occupied Territory!” and “Down with the State of Israel! Freedom for the Palestinian People!” (The text of the sign was followed by a Star of David next to a swastika).
After protesters chanted “Resistance is justified when people are occupied!,” and “Not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crimes,” the organizers led the crowd to a Max Brenner chocolate bar where they called for a boycott of the establishment because of its alleged ties to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The action lasted outside of Max Brenner for approximately ten minutes, as protesters led chants such as “We are left with no other action! Boycott, Divest, and Sanction!”
And at the first protest held in New York on July 9, more than 1,000 demonstrators gathered outside the Israeli Consulate bearing signs comparing Israel to the Ku Klux Klan and Nazi Germany, as well as signs legitimizing violent resistance against Israel. At various points during the rally, protesters in the crowd led chants of “Death to Israel” and “Khaibar, Khaibar ya Yahud, jaysh Muhammad sawfa ya’ud,” which translates to “Oh Khaiber, Khaiber, oh you Jews, the army of Muhammad shall return.” The anti-Semitic slogan evokes an Islamic story of an alleged battle between the prophet Muhammad and the Jews of the town of Khaibar, which resulted in the subjugation of the Jews of Arabia.
Several dozen members of Neturei Karta, a fringe ultra-Orthodox anti-Zionist group, were also in attendance, holding placards that called for an end to the Jewish state and “Zionist terrorism.” The spokesperson for the group, Yisroel Dovid Weiss, addressed the crowd in an attempt to absolve Jews from Israel’s alleged crimes, arguing that until the advent of Zionism, Jews and Muslims lived peacefully together. He also led chants of “Zionism No, The State of Israel Must Go.” Another speaker warned the crowd to avoid dialogue with anyone who supports Israel, saying “No for Normalization!” He further praised the fact that Gaza is “fighting back” and led the crowd in chants of “When People are Occupied, Resistance is Justified.”
