Thousands of demonstrators marched towards the US Capitol on Wednesday to protest Benjamin Netanyahu and call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, as the Israeli premier prepared to address the US Congress.
Crowds carrying Palestinian flags and signs ranging from left-wing slogans to Bible verses gathered near the Capitol calling for a ceasefire and the arrest of Netanyahu, as prosecutors seek a warrant for him at the International Criminal Court.
Small clashes broke out as police fired pepper spray on some protesters to redirect the demonstration as it neared the seat of US government, which was the scene of a riot by Trump supporters on January 6, 2021.
Several demonstrators could be seen washing their eyes and faces after the scuffle.
“The hypocrisy of our politicians today has gone beyond any limits,” Mo, a 58-year-old protester, told AFP.
Netanyahu was addressing a joint session of Congress in a high-profile speech. America is Israel’s steadfast ally in its war against Hamas.
Relations have grown strained as the civilian death toll in Gaza has grown, leading to protests in the United States and increasing criticism from President Joe Biden’s administration, although little has changed in the way of US military support.
Ahead of Netanayahu’s speech, security was reportedly increased at the Capitol, much of which was closed to the public on Wednesday, according to publication The Hill.
Meanwhile, a group of congressional political staffers was planning a walkout, one told AFP without offering more details.
Protesters gathered Wednesday were calling for a ceasefire while also criticizing Netanyahu’s appearance in the United States and Israel’s longstanding policies toward Palestinians.
“Seek peace and pursue it,” read one sign, quoting a Bible verse, while others were designed as criminal “wanted” signs, with photos of Netanyahu in place of a mugshot.
“Arrest that war criminal,” read another.
‘Stop US aid’
Palestinian and Jewish organizers stood on a stage and denounced both the United States and the Israeli government for “genocide,” calling for a “citizen’s arrest” of Netanyahu.
“Stop US aid to Israel,” 24-year-old protester Yudyth Hernandez told AFP from the crowd, saying instead such money would be better used to “fund our schools.”
“We are horrified by the destruction of the health system in Gaza,” Karameh Kuemmerle, of the organization Doctors Against Genocide, told AFP.
“And we are here to show our opposition to having the criminal Netanyahu come to our capital and being greeted by the politicians who sent him weapons to kill children in Gaza,” the doctor, who traveled to Washington from Boston, said.
Speaking from the stage, Mark Diamondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, which along with six other major US unions recently called for a ceasefire, said taxpayer money “should never be used to bomb, maim and kill innocent children, women and men.”
Israel has recently intensified its attacks on Gaza and Netanyahu has insisted that only piling on military pressure can free the hostages and defeat Hamas, which launched a shock attack on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of 1,197 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
The militants also seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom are still in Gaza, including 44 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 39,145 people, also mostly civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
