US Capitol police arrested Jewish activists protesting against US military support for Israel inside a congressional building on Tuesday, a day before Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu is scheduled to deliver a speech to Congress.
The protesters, organised by activist group Jewish Voice for Peace, wore red T-shirts bearing the phrases “not in our name” and “Jews say stop arming Israel.” Some carried banners reading “ceasefire now” and “let Gaza live.”
Protests are planned to coincide with Mr Netanyahu’s visit, in which he will meet President Joe Biden, Vice-President Kamala Harris and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
“For the past 9 months, we’ve witnessed countless horrors in Gaza, committed in our names and funded by our government,” Jewish Voice for Peace wrote on social media.
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The activist group said over 250 protesters were arrested and 400 people took part in the demonstration.
Police said around 200 people were arrested. “We told the people, who legally entered, to stop or they would be arrested. They did not stop,” the police said in a statement. “Demonstrating inside the Congressional Buildings is against the law.”
Mr Netanyahu has kept a low profile in the US capital since landing in the United States this week.
His first 24 hours have seen a series of small meetings with the families of hostages kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th, in which he said that progress was being made on negotiating a prisoner exchange of the remaining 120 hostages as part of a ceasefire deal but defended delaying for better terms.
A day into his trip, Mr Netanyahu had not publicly met any US officials, and his meeting with Mr Biden, who is recovering from Covid-19, was rescheduled to Thursday. Mr Trump said he would meet the Israeli prime minister on Friday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
No timings for meetings have been released with Ms Harris. – Agencies
