WASHINGTON – Hundreds of demonstrators descended on a congressional building in Washington, DC, on Wednesday afternoon to demand a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, resulting in an estimated 300 arrests and restricting access to Capitol Hill.

The rally was organised by two Jewish anti-Zionist groups, Jewish Voice for Peace and IfNotNow.

About 400 of their members assembled inside the rotunda of the Cannon House Office Building, led by about 25 rabbis reading testimonials from Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and reciting prayers.

Outside, hundreds more chanted “Ceasefire now” and sang in Hebrew and English.

Demonstrations are not permitted inside congressional buildings.

About 300 protesters were arrested, organisers estimated, although the Capitol Police would not comment on the number beyond saying on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, that three were charged with assault on a police officer. Protesters were restrained with zip ties and led into police vans.

Ms Linda Holtzman, a rabbi from Philadelphia, said she was protesting because of her faith, values and Jewish history, a theme other attendees echoed.

Ms Holtzman, who was concerned about violence intensifying against civilians in Gaza, said her grandmother survived the Holocaust and that she was taught to fight for all human life.

“Where there is no justice, I have to be a voice for justice,” she said.

Mr Yasir Barakt, who moved to the United States from Gaza about 18 years ago, attended on behalf of his family back in Gaza, where the more than two million people living there are running out of water, food and electricity.

Mr Barakt said he has had limited contact with his family because of the conditions, and he blamed the US for what he described as funding violence against Palestinians.

Mr Jim Best, 77, who identified as a “red-blooded, patriotic taxpayer and grandfather”, visited Gaza in 2016.

The trip, he said, accentuated the quality-of-life disparity among Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip and those of Israelis enjoying relative affluence nearby. He said he felt obligated to protest.

“My heart and mind and soul will never be the same,” Mr Best said.

The gathering at the Capitol came just two days after a rally near the White House on Monday that the Jewish Voice for Peace executive director, Ms Stefanie Fox, estimated drew at least 5,000 people.

Activists at the rally on Wednesday called on demonstrators to attend another protest, near the Israeli embassy in Washington, later in the evening.

On Friday, the organisation plans to participate in a rally with several activist groups at the National Mall.

“People are coming from across the country,” said Ms Eva Borgwardt, the national spokeswoman for IfNotNow. She believes that protesting violence is a way to honour fallen Israelis and Palestinians.

“So many of us are grieving,” she said. “The horrific bombing cannot be the answer.” NYTIMES