The United States’ two busiest airports on Wednesday became the sight of rallies, as pro-Palestinian protesters blocked morning traffic, engaging in violent skirmishes with the police.
Carrying signs that read “free Palestine” and “divest from genocide”, among other things, protesters blocked roads around the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). The coast-to-coast demonstrations, as per Reuters, ended with dozens of arrests.
Unruly demonstrators
As per the Los Angeles Police Department, 36 people were taken into custody at LAX, where demonstrators became unruly.
In a statement, the police said, “Protesters threw a police officer to the ground, used construction debris, road signs, tree branches and blocks of concrete to obstruct” a road into the airport. The entrance was reopened within 45 minutes with “no impacts to fights,” reported the Los Angeles City News Service.
They also attacked “uninvolved passersby in their vehicles,” said the statement, adding that most of those arrested have been booked on rioting charges. One person has been detained on battery charges for assaulting a police officer.
In Queens, at the protest near the JFK Airport, 26 people were arrested for disorderly conduct and impeding vehicular traffic, reported the Port Authority Police Department of New York. The roadway was reopened after 20 minutes.
The protests come as the casualties in Gaza continue to increase, and as the UN Health Agency reported that thousands of people are trying to flee fighting. Since the war began nearly three months ago, more than 21,000 have been killed, and another 55,000 have been injured in Gaza, as per the Hamas-run health ministry.
On Thursday, a report by the UN said the human rights situation in the occupied West Bank was rapidly deteriorating.
Urging Israel to “end unlawful killings” against the Palestinian population, UN rights chief Volker Turk said: “The use of military tactics and weapons in law enforcement contexts, the use of unnecessary or disproportionate force, and the enforcement of broad, arbitrary and discriminatory movement restrictions that affect Palestinians are extremely troubling.”
(With inputs from agencies)
