Activists opposing Israel’s war in Gaza and Washington’s support for its Middle Eastern ally plan protests at the US Capitol on Wednesday to coincide with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s US visit this week. Police expect a “large number of demonstrators” and are making additional security arrangements but report no known threats.
Netanyahu will be in Washington for a July 24 address to a joint session of the US Congress and is expected to meet President Joe Biden. The US has seen months of protests from pro-Palestinian groups and college students over US support for Israel amid its war in Gaza that has killed at least 38,983 Palestinians, displaced nearly all its 2.3 million population, and caused a hunger crisis, according to Gaza health authorities.
Despite Biden's recent support for ceasefire talks, he has continued military support for Israel. Israel’s military campaign followed an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants who surged into Israel, killing 1,200 and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
A coalition of groups, including ANSWER, CodePink, the Palestinian American Community Center, and Jewish Voice for Peace, are expected to participate in the protests. CodePink told Reuters that organizers had arranged buses for human rights advocates to come to Washington from numerous states.
“We anticipate a large number of demonstrators to show up,” the US Capitol Police said. “Our plan includes adding more officers - including from several outside agencies.”
A flyer urged the formation of a “People’s Red Line around the Capitol building” on Wednesday, where demonstrators will criticize the US government for not drawing a “red line” in supporting Israel despite the war’s death toll. Around 230 anonymous Capitol Hill staffers from 122 offices signed a letter, made public last week, urging their bosses to either protest or boycott Netanyahu’s address to Congress. US protests since the war erupted in Gaza have included marches, vigils, and blockades in multiple cities, along with encampments on college campuses.
