Protest erupted in the chamber and outside Capitol Hill as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to a joint session of the US Congress on Thursday, appealing for support while Israel continues its war in Gaza.
Democratic Representative Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, used “war criminal” and “guilty of genocide” placards during his speech. She also wore a Palestinian flag pin and a keffiyeh, which is a black-and-white scarf that has been associated with Palestine’s struggle for over fifty years.
“The apartheid government of Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians,” she wrote in an X post after Netanyahu’s speech. “Palestinians will not be erased. Solidarity with all those outside of these walls in the streets protesting and exercising their right to dissent.”
Furthermore, protesters who wanted American military assistance to stop going to Israel came together beyond Washington’s Union Station where they were seen holding up burning American flags alongside raised Palestinian ones; all this was happening as part of the protests against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visit.
Besides, less than one mile away there was another demo where some police officers had to use pepper spray on some pro-Palestinian protestors out of the thousands who took position outside USA capitol building when he was addressing congress. A crowd bearing Palestinian flags and signs gathered near the Capitol called for ceasefire in Gaza and arrest of Netanyahu by prosecution authorities seeking his warrant from International Criminal Court too.
One sign read “Seek peace and pursue it,” quoting a Bible verse; others were printed like criminal “wanted” posters replacing mug shots with pictures of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Another one said: “Arrest that war criminal”.
In his speech, the prime minister described a vague plan for a post-war Gaza that had been ‘de-radicalized’ and talked about possible future relations between Israel and America’s Arab allies.
Protests both led by Palestine activists as well as many university students against Israeli offensive in Gaza have been going on for several months, during which health authorities there recorded almost 40,000 Palestinian casualties. This was after an Israeli assault that followed a Hamas attack on October 7, resulting in the death of 1,200 and about 250 being held hostage as revealed by Israeli sources. Israel and Hamas have not yet signed a permanent peace agreement despite mediation efforts from the United States, Qatar, and Egypt.
Netanyahu accused the protesters during his speech before congress of having been manipulated by the Iranian regime. “When the tyrants of Tehran who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not covering their hair are praising, promoting, funding you; you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots,” he said.
Susan Sarandon among other activists argued that aid to Israel should be stopped because many people died in Gaza. Sarandon put it: “No one is free until everyone is free.”
Many Democratic lawmakers shunned Netanyahu’s congressional address owing to outrage over what has happened to Gazans due to deaths and humanitarian crisis there.
