Intense security at peaceful parade for Israel in Manhattan
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Protesters hold a "Bring Them Home Now" banner during the annual Israel Day parade along Fifth Avenue in New York on June 2.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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NEW YORK – Thousands of pro-Israel demonstrators marched along Fifth Avenue on June 2 during a heavily policed Israel Day parade that took on a more sombre tone in 2024 as the war in the Gaza Strip enters its eighth month.
The normally jubilant event, which has been held annually since 1964, had fewer spectators in midtown Manhattan than usual because of intense security.
The parade – which was expected to draw 40,000 participants, all of whom needed credentials to march – has been previously called “Celebrate Israel”. This year, it was renamed “Israel Day on 5th” and focused on remembering the hostages seized by Hamas on Oct 7.
The event was mostly peaceful and drew very few counter-protesters. Police barricades, chain-link fences and checkpoints limited access to the route.
New York has had roughly 3,000 demonstrations related to the Israel-Hamas conflict since October 2023, according to Mayor Eric Adams, most of them pro-Palestinian, and hundreds of protesters have been arrested. No Palestinian flags were in evidence along the parade route on June 2.
Still, moments of tension erupted between participants and politicians. At the start of the parade, the arrival of elected officials, including Governor Kathy Hochul; Ms Letitia James, the attorney-general of New York; and Senator Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader, drew jeers from the crowd.
As Senator Schumer began to speak, at least one person shouted, “You betrayed us”, a reference to his sharp criticism of the Israeli government in a Senate speech in March.
Mr Schumer continued, saying: “Let us say that Hamas is evil and that we will defeat Hamas.”
Mayor Eric Adams, who attended the parade, also called for the destruction of Hamas and the return of the hostages.
“Let’s bring peace so we don’t lose the lives of innocent people,” he added.
Mr Eric Goldstein, the chief executive of the UJA-Federation of New York, a philanthropic group that was one of the organisers of the event, said that the group recognises “that there are many Jews in our community who have disagreements about what is the right way forward”.
But he added that the event was about putting aside those differences and “showing up proudly and publicly in support of a Jewish homeland”.
Israel faces enormous international criticism over its invasion of Gaza, which began in October 2023, after Hamas’ shock attacks on Israel on Oct 7, which killed about 1,200 Israelis. Since the war began, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul speaks during the annual Israel Day of Fifth parade.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
About 125 living and dead hostages remain in Gaza, according to the Israeli authorities.
Ms Noam Safir, 20, whose grandfather, Mr Shlomo Mantzur, is one of the hostages, flew to New York from Israel to attend the parade.
Ms Safir said “to be here is to shout, to cry their cries to represent” her grandfather and the other hostages.
“It’s very overwhelming to see the support,” she added.
At a news conference on June 1, police commissioner Edward A. Caban said law enforcement had not received any credible threats to the parade.
But Ms Rebecca Weiner, the head of the intelligence bureau at the Police Department, said that the Islamic State group had circulated anti-Israel propaganda online targeting the event, prompting law enforcement to put strict security measures in place,
During the parade, police helicopters and drones whirred overhead as police dogs and hundreds of officers patrolled the area.
The parade remained peaceful through its end late in the afternoon on June 2. Along the route, hundreds of marchers waved Israel’s blue and white flag while others draped it over their shoulders.
In some areas, the crowd was so dense that people tripped over one another as they tried to navigate Fifth Avenue. Flyers stuck on lampposts featured photographs of the hostages and the words “kidnapped by Hamas”.
Still, as the event came to a close on the Upper East Side, there were signs of levity. Revellers began to dance in the street as those on parade floats sang the anthem “Am Yisrael Chai”.
The demonstrators were joined by several Israeli government officials despite a letter from Israeli activists living in New York who asked that they be barred from participating. Among those who attended were Minister of Foreign Affairs Israel Katz and Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan, according to a spokesperson for the Israeli consulate in New York.
People hold up a portrait of youngest Israeli hostage, Kfir Bibas, during the annual Israel Day of Fifth parade.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Jewish pro-Palestinian groups did not appear to protest the parade, but a leading group, Jewish Voice for Peace, attacked the event in a statement, saying there was nothing to celebrate while the war raged.
“The latest massacre of refugees in a designated safe zone in Rafah has made it abundantly clear that the United States government must immediately stop arming the Israeli military,” said Mr Jay Saper, an organiser for the group.
Mr Lev Tsitrin, 59, who is from Belarus and now lives in Brooklyn, said he had attended several Israel Day parades.
But this year, he said, “it felt incumbent on me to show my support”.
The war and the heightened security on Fifth Avenue was a stark contrast to past parades.
“It’s usually more festive. It feels tense this year,” Mr Tsitrin said, adding, “People are worked up because this is so serious. It is life and death.” NYTIMES
