Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have swept across several major U.S. cities, including California, Illinois, New York, and the Pacific Northwest, demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. Organized by the A15 Action group, protesters aimed to disrupt economic activities as part of a national "economic blockade to free Palestine."
The group stated its intention to target economic hubs and disrupt the flow of capital to raise awareness of what they view as complicity in genocide. In San Francisco, protesters blocked freeway sections, causing traffic congestion during morning commute hours. Similar disruptions were reported in Chicago, where demonstrators blocked lanes leading to O'Hare International Airport, and in Brooklyn, New York, where protesters obstructed traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge.
In Seattle, a demonstration near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport led to road closures, while in San Antonio, protesters disrupted traffic near the Valero Energy Company headquarters.
Authorities reported at least 40 arrests across various locations due to the protests.
Additionally, a group of pro-Palestinian American protesters chained themselves to a U.S. warship to prevent it from transporting weapons and military equipment to Israel.
The protests come in response to Israel's conflict with Gaza, which began on October 7. The health ministry in Gaza reports that the conflict has resulted in the deaths of at least 33,797 people, mostly women and children, and has wounded another 76,465 individuals.
The ongoing conflict has led to severe humanitarian crises in Gaza, with the UN reporting that 85% of Gaza's population has been internally displaced, facing shortages of food, clean water, and medicine.
