Home to between 1.6 and two million Jews and hundreds of thousands of Muslims, New York has for the past three weeks been rocked by demonstrations, rallies and vigils in support of the Palestinians and Israel.
Left-wing American Jewish activists are also up in arms against Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
Hundreds of people were arrested Friday when police broke up a large demonstration of mostly Jewish New Yorkers who had taken over the main hall of Manhattan’s Grand Central station in protest at Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
“We’re mobilizing all across New York City, flooding Brooklyn,” to call for the “liberation (of) each and every single Palestinian”, said 21-year-old protester Abdullah Akl.
Protest organizer Nerdeen Kiswani took aim at American “politicians” for their unwavering support of Israel.
“We are here as New Yorkers to say that we’re against this and we’re against the politicians, the local politicians as well like New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, who have both pledged unconditional support to Israel,” said Kiswani.
Their stance “means that they provide unconditional support to the killing of our people,” added Kiswani.
Adams, who governs a city of nearly nine million people, including the world’s largest Jewish community after Israel, has repeatedly assured pro-Israel rallies that Israel’s “fight” is New York’s fight too.
New York media and AFPTV estimated the crowd at thousands of demonstrators, who waved “Free Palestine” and “By any means necessary” placards.
Israel unleashed a massive bombing campaign after Hamas gunmen stormed across the border on October 7, killing 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and seizing 230 hostages, according to Israeli officials.
Since then, relentless Israeli strikes on Gaza have killed more than 8,000 people, half of them children, the Hamas-controlled health ministry in the territory said.
The United Kingdom has supported Israel’s “right to defend” itself after the October 7 attack by Hamas killed more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians.
The death toll in Gaza has crossed 7,700, also mostly civilians, since Israel’s bombardment began three weeks ago, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
In Malaysia, a large crowd of demonstrators chanted slogans outside the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur.
An estimated 100,000 people rallied in the southern Indian state of Kerala in solidarity with Palestine.
Addressing hundreds of thousands of supporters at a huge rally in Istanbul, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Israel was an occupier, and repeated his stance about Hamas not being a “terrorist” organisation.
Erdogan drew a sharp rebuke from Israel this week for calling the armed group “freedom fighters”.
Protests were also held in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
Palestinian protesters in Hebron in the occupied West Bank called for a global boycott of Israeli products. “Don’t contribute to the killing of the children of Palestine,” they chanted.
Elsewhere in Europe, people took to the streets of Copenhagen, Rome and Stockholm.
Some cities in France have banned rallies since the war began, fearing they could fuel social tensions. But despite a ban in Paris, a small rally took place on Saturday. Several hundred people also marched in the southern city of Marseille.
In New Zealand’s capital, Wellington, thousands of people holding Palestinian flags and placards reading “Free Palestine” marched to Parliament House.
Culled from AlJazeera