Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel activists clashed Wednesday outside the Israeli Consulate in New York City.
Recent anti-Israel protests around the U.S. were sparked by the recent round of hostilities between Israel and the Palestinians, which included a massive rocket attack on Israeli localities all over the country and retaliatory IAF strikes in Gaza.
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Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian activists clash in New York on Wednesday
(Photo: Reuters)
Some of the pro-Palestinian demonstrators carried signs accusing Israel of apartheid, as well as banners reading: "We will liberate Palestine", "Support Palestinian resistance" and "Biden, stop financing the Israeli occupation - from an Israeli Jew."
They were joined a number of ultra-Orthodox Jews who belong to a sect that does not believe the Jewish state should exist until the Messiah comes.
Anti-Israel protest in New York
(Video: Reuters)
At the spot where the two protests collided, pro-Palestinian demonstrators were seen making rude gestures to the Israel supporters while some pro-Israel supporters were seen spraying their opponents with an unidentified substance.
Another anti-Israeli demonstration was expected to take place in New York on Wednesday, this time under the headline "Everyone is going out for Palestine."
Clashes between protesters in New York
(Video: Reuters)
Another pro-Palestinian demonstration took place Wednesday near the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles.
Participants carried posters that read: "It is not a 'conflict' if one side has guns and the other side prays," "Liberate Palestine" and "Save Sheikh Jarrah.”
They also brandished a picture of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with a blue Star of David on his forehead, a mustache reminiscent of that of Adolf Hitler, and images of Palestinian bodies around him.
The White House said Tuesday night that Israel has a legitimate right to defend itself from Hamas rocket attacks but also applied pressure over the treatment of Palestinians, saying Jerusalem "must be a place of co-existence."
American Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that the U.S. believes Palestinians and Israelis equally deserve to live with safety and security and was dispatching Deputy Assistant Secretary for Israel-Palestinian Affairs Hady Amr to Israel for talks with both sides.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that U.S. President Joe Biden was primarily focused on de-escalating the violence.
She said the Biden's support for "Israel's security, for its legitimate right to defend itself and its people, is fundamental and will never waver."
"Jerusalem, a city of such importance to people of faith around the world, must be a place of co-existence," Psaki said.