WHY WERE THEY NOT ARRESTED?

Pro-Palestine mob SHUT NYC's Manhattan Bridge on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year... as Hamas releases Israel-American hostage, 4, and asks to extend truce

More than 1,000 people flooded the streets in New York to demand a cease-fire in Gaza

 

By Laura Parnaby

 

Daily Mail

Nov 26, 2023

 

Pro-Palestine protesters have shut down Manhattan Bridge on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year to demand a 'permanent ceasefire' in Gaza

 

Hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters have shut down Manhattan Bridge on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year to demand a 'permanent ceasefire' in Gaza.

The New York protest was led by Jewish Voice for Peace, an activist group that describes itself as being the 'largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world' predominantly consisting of people from the faith. 

It came as the fragile four-day pause in Israeli airstrikes which have so far killed an estimated 11,000 people is set to end Monday - and as the first US citizen was freed in prisoner swaps. 

Four-year-old Israeli-American dual national Abigail Mor Edan was released by the militant group - after her parents Roy Edan, 43, and Smadar Edan, 40, were among 1,200 people slaughtered in the October 7 attack.

She was one of 17 hostages freed on Sunday, including 14 Israelis, in the third exchange under a truce that the US hoped would be extended. Israel released 39 prisoners in return. 

 

Sunday's mass demonstration in the Big Apple came amid a fragile four-day ceasefire between Israel and Hamas as dozens more hostages were exchanged

More than 1,000 people flooded the streets in New York City to demand a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, as the current pause is set to end on Monday

 

The New York protest came on one of the busiest travel days of the year, between Thanksgiving and the Christmas period - and City officials warned drivers to avoid the area.  

Protesters began blocking the road at Canal Street in lower Manhattan around 2pm, many wearing shirts emblazoned with the words 'ceasefire now,' while some laid a banner on the sidewalk reading 'the whole world is watching' and 'let Gaza live.'

Organizers led chants of 'Palestinians have the right to live in freedom' and 'a pause is not enough, let Gaza live' through megaphones. 

Many also wore keffiyehs - a monochrome patterned scarf that is a patriotic symbol of Palestinian identity - and waved Palestinian flags. 

The same group has led several other ginormous pro-Palestine protests in the Big Apple recently, including the storming of Grand Central Station in late October and a Statue of Liberty demo in early November. 

Palestinian health officials in Gaza said Tuesday that they have lost the ability to count the dead because of the collapse of parts of the enclave’s health system and the difficulty of retrieving bodies from areas overrun by Israeli tanks and troops.

The Health Ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza, which carefully tracked casualties over the first five weeks of war, gave its most recent death toll of 11,078 on Nov. 10.

The United Nations humanitarian office, which cites the Health Ministry death toll in its regular reports, still refers to 11,078 as the last verified death toll from the war.

 

The protest was led by Jewish Voice for Peace, an activist group which describes itself as being the 'largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world' predominantly consisting of people from the Jewish faith

Protesters began blocking the road at Canal Street in lower Manhattan around 2pm, many wearing shirts emblazoned with the words 'ceasefire now', while some laid a banner on the sidewalk reading 'the whole world is watching' and 'let Gaza live'

Wearing hoodies branded with the words 'Jews say ceasefire now', the organizers led chants of 'Palestinians have the right to live in freedom' and 'a pause is not enough, let Gaza live' through megaphones

 

It also comes after three Palestinian college students were shot while walking home from dinner Saturday night in Vermont - in what the Arab American Anti-Discrimination Committee alleges is a hate crime.

The victims of the Burlington, Vermont shooting have been identified as Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdel Hamid and Tahseen Ahmed, all three are 20 years old.

Awartani attends Brown University, Hamid is a student at Haverford University and Ahmed studies at Trinity College. 

According to the Burlington Police Department, the men were wearing keffiyeh scarves and speaking Arabic when an unidentified white gunman approached them.

Police have not made any arrests in the case and have not released suspect information.  

 

Many protesters on Manhattan Bridge wore keffiyehs - a monochrome patterned scarf which is a patriotic symbol of Palestinian identity - and waved Palestinian flags

The same group has led several other ginormous pro-Palestine protests in the Big Apple recently, including the storming of Grand Central Station in late October and a Statue of Liberty demo in early November

More than 1,000 protesters led by Jewish Voice for Peace blocked Manhattan Bridge Sunday demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza 

 

President Joe Biden celebrated the freedom of the first American captive - Abigail - who is now in the hands of Red Cross officials in Israel.  

Biden said that what the youngster has endured is 'unthinkable' and that she has suffered a 'terrible trauma'. 

'I wish I were there to hold her,' Biden said. 'Today she's free, and Jilly and I, together with so many Americans, are praying for the fact that she is going to be alright.'

The President added that his goal is to extend the cease-fire for as long as possible.  

Abigail was one of 17 hostages released on Sunday, including 14 Israelis, in the third exchange under a four-day truce that the US hoped would be extended. Israel released 39 prisoners in return. 

Most hostages were handed over directly to Israel, waving to a cheering crowd as they arrived at an air force base. 

Others left through Egypt. Israel's army said one was airlifted to a hospital, and the director of Soroka Medical Center said Elma Avraham, 84, was in life-threatening condition as 'a result of an extended period of time when an elderly woman was not taken care of as needed.'

A fourth exchange is expected on Monday — the last day of the cease-fire during which a total of 50 hostages and 150 Palestinian prisoners are to be freed. Most are women and minors.