On Monday evening, hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered and marched near the Met Gala in New York City, with several arrested by the New York Police Department (NYPD).
According to the information obtained by The New York Post, which estimated the number of protesters to be over a thousand, a double line of police officers wearing riot gear stopped protesters at the East 79th St Transverse in Central Park.
Protesters holding Palestinian flags, banging drums, and yelling "Free, Free Palestine!" marched down Madison Avenue, one block east of the gala venue, despite a heavy police presence.
Videos and photos from the scene showed protesters in action as they filled the street and blocked traffic on nearby Park Avenue, marching through Central Park before being arrested by police.
At least one vandal who hated America set fire to Old Glory near the site of the 107th Infantry Memorial, the base of which had "Gaza" written in bold black letters.
A group of people decorated the bronze soldiers of the statue with stickers with the Palestinian flag and the words "Stop the Genocide. End the Apartheid. Free Palestine."
Some protesters climbed up on top of the infantrymen, covered the figures, and waved Palestinian flags.
On Monday night, vandals also targeted the bronze statue of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman in Grand Army Plaza, another Central Park landmark.
This year, there was a heavy police presence outside the event with steel barricades and traffic closures, but the protest continued. NYPD deputies wearing masks and zip-tied handcuffs were also observed near the event.
There are going to be a lot of Israel-Hamas war protests in New York City on Monday. Furthermore, Columbia and New York University will host rallies as part of what is being called a "Citywide Day of Rage for Gaza."
