Anti-Zionist protesters have been filmed chanting in assist of Hamas, based on a video posted by Luke Tress on his X account.
Luke Tress on X
Dozens of anti-Zionist protesters rallying in opposition to land gross sales within the West Financial institution in Palestine on Thursday have been caught on digital camera shouting a pro-Hamas chant in entrance of the Yeshiva of Central Queens synagogue in Kew Gardens Hills, based on a viral video posted on social media.
“Say it loud, say it clear, we support Hamas here,” protesters could be heard chanting within the video, posted by X (Twitter) consumer Luke Tress, a reporter for the Occasions of Israel. Most of the protesters, together with members of the Hasidic Jewish neighborhood, held indicators that learn pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel messages, though none of them have been confirmed to include any pro-Hamas messages.
The professional-Hamas chant had neighborhood members and elected officers fuming. Some claimed the protesters have been “antisemitic” and “terrorists.” Others claimed using the offensive chant didn’t symbolize the pro-Palestinian motion, which has repeatedly denounced the terrorist group prior to now and separated itself from its actions.
Human rights teams in assist of the pro-Palestinian motion which have condemned Israel have additionally condemned Hamas, together with Human Rights Watch, Amnesty Worldwide and Worldwide Affiliation of Genocide Students.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a vocal supporter of Palestine, launched an official assertion in regards to the pro-Hamas chants Friday night, as Tress additionally posted on X.
“As I made clear, the rhetoric and displays that we saw in Kew Gardens Hills last night are wrong and have no place in our city,” Mamdani mentioned. “My team is in close touch with the NYPD regarding last night’s protest and counterprotest. We will continue to ensure New Yorkers’ safety entering and exiting houses of worship as well as the constitutional right to protest.”
The protest comes every week after Mamdani signed a blanket government order voiding all government orders issued by then-Mayor Eric Adams between the date of his legal indictment, Sept. 26, 2024, and the top of his time period, Dec. 31, 2025. A kind of voided government orders, which Adams signed final month, had directed the NYPD to look at methods to ban protests close to synagogues and different homes of worship within the wake of a pro-Palestine protest outdoors an Higher West Aspect synagogue in November.
‘This is vile antisemitism,’ officers say of pro-Hamas chant
Counter-protesters in assist of Israel have been separated from pro-Palestine protesters on Thursday evening.Luke Tress on X
Different public officers took to the social media platform to denounce the protesters’ obvious assist of the terrorist group.
“No, we don’t support Hamas in Queens,” wrote Congresswoman Grace Meng on X Thursday evening, thanking the New York Police Division’s 107th Precinct and Assemblyman Sam Berger for “updates and for working hard to keep everyone in the community safe.”
“Hamas is a terrorist organization that calls for the genocide of Jews,” Gov. Kathy Hochul wrote on her account. “No matter your political beliefs, this type of rhetoric is disgusting, it’s dangerous, and it has no place in New York.”
Even Brad Lander, former comptroller of NYC and a vocal critic of Israel, criticized the chants on X.
“Let’s be crystal clear: this is vile antisemitism,” he wrote. “This should not have to be said: you can oppose land sales in the West Bank, without supporting terrorism & the mass murder of Jews.”
As of press time, the neighborhood group that organized the protest, PAL-Awda NY/NJ, didn’t reply to remark concerning the video. It did announce it will publish an announcement on its social media accounts addressing the protest and the chants captured within the recording later within the night.
The group was based in March 2024. It claims land gross sales transacted by Israeli actual property businesses are restricted by ethnicity and solely granted to patrons who go pro-Zionist screening questions, which the group says violates the federal Civil Rights Act of 1965, Truthful Housing Act of 1968, and state and worldwide legislation.
“PAL-Awda and our community members are out here in Queens, New York, in protest of an illegal sale of Palestinian land,” mentioned a protester in a video posted to the group’s Instagram account on Jan. 8. “We’re here in protest of Tivuch Shelly, which is selling homes in occupied Palestine on stolen land. We are here to say that we will not be silent in the face of this colonial expansion of the Zionist project, which is a blatant violation of international law and is contributing to the displacement and the possession of the Palestinian community.”
Tivuch Shelly, an actual property company that helps English-speaking people discover houses in Israel, has marketed a number of properties throughout the West Financial institution, which is Palestinian territory. The company was based in 1989.
