Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing large protests in New York ahead of his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, with hundreds of demonstrators blocking roads outside the UN headquarters.According to The Guardian, protesters including Jewish, Palestinian, Iranian and Lebanese New Yorkers gathered outside the UN, chanting slogans such as “Let Gaza live” and “the whole world is watching”, while several protesters were arrested as police moved in to clear the demonstration.Protesters sat in the middle of streets for more than an hour, forcing official motorcades heading to the UN to divert. Demonstrators carried banners calling to “end the genocide” and wore shirts reading “Fund people not bombs”. A kite bearing the words “Free Palestine” was also flown during the protest.The protests come amid rising political controversy over Netanyahu’s visit, with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani having repeatedly called the Israeli leader a “war criminal” and previously said he would seek his arrest if Netanyahu came to the city.Netanyahu had responded by warning Mamdani in a video message, saying, “I’m going to tell the truth about you.”Mamdani later acknowledged that he does not have the legal authority to order Netanyahu’s arrest, citing legal and federal jurisdictional issues. He has also said New Yorkers have the right to protest and that his administration respects that right.The NYPD had not immediately confirmed the number of arrests, while organisers estimated that more than 100 protesters had been detained, The Guardian reported.The demonstrations also drew several openly pro-Palestinian candidates, including New York candidates Darializa Avila Chevalier and Brad Lander, as well as Pennsylvania’s Chris Rabb, New Jersey’s Adam Hamawy and Colorado’s Melat Kiros.Actor Hannah Einbinder was among those arrested ahead of the protest. She said she joined the demonstration as “a Jew, as an American, and as a human being”, while calling for an end to US support for Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.The protests are among several demonstrations planned around Netanyahu’s UN appearance this week, reflecting the growing political and public opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza in parts of the US.
