Pro-Palestinian Protesters Burn American Flags and Deface Monuments Amid Clashes With Police in D.C.

Thousands of protesters opposing the Israel-Hamas war descended on Washington, D.C. on Wednesday to condemn Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress. With chants of “Free, free Palestine,” they marched toward the Capitol before some clashed with police and were pepper-sprayed.

Pro-Palestinian activists, who promised a “day of rage” ahead of Netanyahu’s visit, filled the streets of the nation’s capital, many carrying Palestinian flags and signs calling for an end to U.S. aid to Israel and to “arrest Netanyahu.” While most demonstrators were peaceful, some clashes broke out at times between demonstrators and law enforcement, which deployed pepper spray as parts of the crowd became “violent” and pushed up against police lines. At least 23 people were arrested, including six inside the House Gallery.

Outside the fenced-off Capitol, the scene was most tense at Washington’s Union Station as pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas demonstrators removed American flags and hoisted Palestinian ones in their place. At one point, an American flag was set on fire alongside an effigy of Netanyahu, prompting cheers from the crowd. “Netanyahu, you can’t hide. You’re committing genocide,” protesters shouted. Protesters also spray painted graffiti on a monument to Christopher Columbus and an adjacent Liberty Bell replica, including the words “Hamas is coming” and "All Zionists are bastards."

Police responded with what appeared to be chemical irritants, attempting to disperse the crowd amid escalating tensions throughout the day.

Netanyahu directly addressed the demonstrators outside the Capitol during his speech, which some members of Congress did not attend out of protest. “Many choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas. They stand with rapists and murderers,” he said. “They should be ashamed of themselves.”

Netanyahu has become one of the world’s most controversial political figures in his pursuit of Israel’s deadly military campaign in the Gaza Strip following attacks on Oct. 7 by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which was the deadliest day for Jewish people since the Holocaust. More than 39,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began nine months ago, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

During his nearly 52-minute address, Netanyahu did not mention the status of cease-fire negotiations with Hamas, despite intense international pressure to reach a deal.

As he defended Israel’s offensive against Hamas, demonstrators a couple blocks away carried signs denouncing his visit and calling for an end to what they perceive as unwavering American support for Israeli military actions. “We need to be out here. We need to say, ‘Not in our name’,” Irene Ippolito, a protester, is quoted as telling Al Jazeera. “As American citizens, we have to realize that this could not be taking place without our taxpayer dollars sending tons of weapons to Israel as it slaughters men, women and children in Gaza.”

Police blocked demonstrators from getting close to the Capitol where Netanyahu was speaking. But some demonstrators attempted to block traffic and disrupt Netanyahu's motorcade route, chanting messages such as: "Not another nickel, not another dime. No more money for Israel's crimes." Protesters blocking traffic were turned away by officers.

A couple of days before Netanyahu’s address, dozens of protesters rallied outside his Washington hotel, holding a “noise demonstration” and reportedly dropping swarms of crickets and mealworms throughout the hotel. On Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of demonstrators staged a flash mob-style protest inside the Cannon House Office Building, sitting on the floor and chanting “Let Gaza Live!” Capitol Police said it arrested about 200 people on charges related to the sit-in.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for President, denounced the violence at Union Station in a statement on Thursday morning, describing some of the protesters’ actions as “despicable” and “unpatriotic.” 

“I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews,” Harris said. “Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation. I condemn the burning of the American flag. That flag is a symbol of our highest ideals as a nation and represents the promise of America. It should never be desecrated in that way.”

Below, photos of the demonstrations and clashes in Washington on Wednesday.