Hundreds of protesters blocked a street near United Nations headquarters in New York as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to address the General Assembly, forcing official motorcades to divert and prompting police to detain demonstrators. Activists sat in the road for more than an hour as they chanted over the Gaza war.
The action was coordinated by Jewish Voice for Peace Action, according to reporting on the demonstration, and brought together Jewish, Palestinian, Iranian and Lebanese New Yorkers, political candidates and public figures.
Protesters chanted 'Let Gaza live' and displayed signs including 'Fund people not bombs' as they sought to draw attention to the war in Gaza involving Israel and Hamas.
Road Protest Disrupts UN Access
The demonstration unfolded as the UN General Assembly brought heightened security and rolling traffic restrictions to central Manhattan. The street action near the UN complex added to disruption in the area.
Protesters remained seated in the roadway for more than an hour, blocking traffic and causing official motorcades travelling to the UN to divert. A further rally and march towards UN headquarters had also been planned later that afternoon.
Protesters wore clothing carrying the message 'Fund people not bombs' and displayed banners reading 'end the genocide'. They also chanted 'the whole world is watching' and flew a kite carrying the words 'Free Palestine'.
Descriptions of Israel's actions as 'genocide', and references to Netanyahu as a 'war criminal', were political claims made by protesters and organisers. They are contested and are not presented in this report as legal findings.
Detentions Reported During Demonstration
Police moved in after the road protest, but the final number of people arrested or detained was not immediately confirmed by the New York Police Department. One local report put the number at about 80, while organisers gave an estimate of more than 100 people taken into custody.
The differing figures should not be treated as a final total. The NYPD had not immediately released a confirmed count at the time of reporting.
The protest drew wider notice after media reports said Hacks actor Hannah Einbinder and Darializa Avila Chevalier, the Democratic nominee for New York's 13th Congressional District, were among those detained. The reports should be understood as accounts of detentions during a developing protest, rather than a final police accounting.
Einbinder, who has publicly supported Palestinian rights, said she felt compelled to participate 'as a Jew, as an American, and as a human being'. 'We will not be silent as our government fully funds a genocide in Palestine,' she said.
Avila Chevalier was reported to have been arrested during the action. Her status as a Democratic nominee should be confirmed against current electoral records immediately before publication.
Protest Claims Remain Attributed
Beth Miller, political director of Jewish Voice for Peace Action, said the group coordinated the first protest outside the UN. 'What we made clear today is that New Yorkers, including Jewish New Yorkers, do not want war criminals and the architects of genocide coming to our city,' Miller said.
Miller's comments represented the organisation's position. The terms 'war criminals' and 'architects of genocide' are allegations and political characterisations, not findings established in this article.
New Jersey congressional candidate Adam Hamawy said the UN was 'inviting Netanyahu as a guest rather than trying him as a war criminal in The Hague'. The statement was Hamawy's view and is not presented as a judicial conclusion.
Wider Protest Context
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he would not attend demonstrations connected to Netanyahu's visit. He also said he did not have the legal authority to order Netanyahu's arrest, following earlier remarks about the Israeli leader's possible visit.
A separate demonstration took place at John F Kennedy International Airport the previous day. Protesters said they were objecting to what they alleged were military-related shipments on commercial flights bound for Israel, an allegation not independently established in this report.
The New York demonstration involved a reported street blockade, diverted motorcades and police detentions, while the final number taken into custody had not been confirmed by the NYPD at the time of reporting. It was among the most visible demonstrations surrounding Netanyahu's New York visit.
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