U.S. Capitol Police officers use pepper spray on pro-Palestinian demonstrators, on the day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, U.S., July 24, 2024. (Credit: Umit Bektas/Reuters)
Thousands of protestors took to the streets of Washington D.C. as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered his speech to a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday afternoon, seeking to bolster support for Israel’s 10-month war in Gaza.
Demonstrators agitated on a few key demands: a permanent cease-fire, an end to the occupation of the Palestinian Territories, the release of all Palestinian political prisoners and the termination of American financial and military support to Israel.
L’Orient Today spoke to Kaleem Hawa, 30, an organizer from the Palestinian Youth Movement’s New York chapter. The movement worked alongside student organizations, national pro-Palestinian bodies and anti-Zionist Jewish groups to bring Wednesday’s event together.
“They’re inviting a war criminal to come speak in Congress and we’re against that,” Hawa said.
On May 20, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court on Monday applied for arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and top Hamas leaders on suspicion of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
“We have been consolidating a coalition of progressive forces in the U.S. around the question of Palestine to make it clear that arming and funding a genocide is unacceptable and that we’ll fight against it,” he continued.
At its peak, Hawa estimated that 20,000 people gathered and were met by a significant police presence. According to the New York Police Department, over 200 officers were sworn in as Capitol Police for the weekend to provide reinforcements.
According to U.S. police, five people were arrested inside the Capitol building for attempting to disrupt Netanyahu's address.
“There is always a security team and since the genocide started, they have gotten more and more brutal,” Hawa said. “They’ve been beating up and arresting students at every protest.”
A student at the march who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons reported that tear gas was used on a group of peaceful protestors. Others were arrested.
“The idea today was to form a red line to show the [Biden] administration that there is a red line that Israel can’t cross,” he said.
“Elected officials aren’t putting any kind of restraint on Netanyahu and his government’s policies towards Gaza and the West Bank. They’re not setting any red lines and it’s important for Americans to stand up and request more from their elected officials.”
The student pointed to the fact that Netanyahu has been “vaguely scolded” by the Biden administration but has still been invited to address Congress four times — more than any foreign leader in history.
In his address to Congress, Netanyahu deemed the protestors “Iran’s useful idiots,” drawing a mix of cheers and boos from the congregation. However, a fact-checking piece by American news outlet ABC News wrote, "Dismissing U.S. protesters as mostly puppets of Iran is not accurate, although the US intelligence community does believe that Iran is trying to stoke division."
"I want to be clear that I know Americans who participate in protests are, in good faith, expressing their views on the conflict in Gaza," added ABC News citing the Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.
Regardless, organizers and protestors have pledged to continue to make their presence known and put pressure on lawmakers until their demands are met.
