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‘Free Palestine’ Activist in Arizona Wearing ‘Israel Kills Children’ T-Shirt Gets Arrested After Refusing to Leave Gym
A pro-Palestinian activist who was kicked out of a gym in Gilbert, Arizona, and arrested after he wore a shirt that read “Israel Kills Children.” Photo: Screenshot
A pro-Palestinian activist wearing an offensive T-shirt critical of Israel was kicked out of a gym in Gilbert, Arizona, and arrested this week after he ignored requests by gym management to leave the premises.
The man, who goes by the social media handle Resistance is Beautiful, posted videos of the incident on Wednesday on Instagram. It began when he was exercising at a Life Time gym in Gilbert while wearing a black short-sleeve T-shirt that said “Israel Kills Children.” He said that when he arrived at the gym and was checked in, a gym employee told him that he needed to take off the shirt, whose message was an apparent commentary on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war falsely accusing the Jewish state of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. He refused to take off the shirt.
Shortly afterward, the gym’s manager approached the activist and told him that he must leave the premises for not having “an active membership, or the gym would call the police. When the activist refused to leave the facility, police were called to escort him out of the building.
“You don’t have an active membership so I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” the gym’s manager, Mike Esposito, said to the anti-Israel activist in a video shared on Instagram.
“I just paid for my membership, what do you mean?” the activist replied. “I pay for my membership … I’ve been a member here for three years. Payment goes through every month.”
“Someone from corporate … the cops are on their way,” Esposito said. “Your membership is not active so we called the police because you’re trespassing here in the club.”
The activist then asked Esposito, “Is the problem the shirt? Or is it the skin color?” He also told the manager: “You know where there are no more gyms left? In Palestine. Because you guys bombed it all. Are you offended by the shirt or the fact that you guys kill all the Palestinians in the gyms over there [in Gaza]. Is the problem the shirt?”
Esposito, who is reportedly not Jewish or Israeli but of Italian descent, ignored the man’s questions about the T-shirt and his remarks about Palestinians. Instead, the manager repeatedly said that the activist does not have an active membership at the facility. “You just don’t have an active membership, so right now you’re trespassing because you’re in the club without an active membership,” he said. “We have to ask you to leave.”
Two Gilbert police officers arrived not long afterward and arrested the anti-Israel activist for trespassing. Before they escorted him out of the gym, he told police, “There’s a Holocaust going on in Palestine … there are no more gyms left in Palestine, you guys bombed all of them. Free Palestine.” He also shared that he wore the “Israel Kills Children” T-shirt previously at the gym, and staff members told him in the past that it was offensive. “They’ve always said, ‘Oh that shirt is offensive.’ You know, typical Gilbert white supremacy stuff,” he said.
The founder, CEO, chairman, and president of Life Time is Bahram Akradi, who was born in Tehran, Iran, and emigrated to the US months before the 1979 Iranian revolution. He founded the chain of gyms in 1992.
The activist was released from the Gilbert police station shortly after the incident at the gym. “There is no greater honor in the world than to sit in a jail cell for Palestine,” he said in an Instagram video posted on Wednesday after his release. “And we’ll do it over and over and over again until we break this enemy and we get Palestine back. That’s my word.”
The man has shared other photos and videos on social media of him clashing with police officers in Gilbert, trespassing while carrying a Palestinian flag and getting arrested for his anti-Israel activism. He also shared clips of himself wearing other anti-Israel shirts, including one that read “Israel is a terrorist project, Free Palestine,” and another that said, “Israel KILLS and America covers it up.”
The post ‘Free Palestine’ Activist in Arizona Wearing ‘Israel Kills Children’ T-Shirt Gets Arrested After Refusing to Leave Gym first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump Promises Arab Leaders He Won’t Let Israel Annex West Bank, Politico Reports
US President Donald Trump points a finger as he delivers remarks in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, July 31, 2025. Photo: Kent Nishimura via Reuters Connect
US President Donald Trump promised Arab leaders he would not let Israel annex the West Bank, Politico reported on Wednesday, citing six people familiar with the matter.
Two people described Trump as being firm on the topic during their meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, Politico reported.
Two others familiar with the matter, Politico reported, said the US team presented a white paper outlining the Trump administration’s plan to end the Gaza war, including the promise against West Bank annexation.
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US Envoy Confirms Israel, Syria Are Close to ‘De-Escalation’ Pact
Tom Barrack speaks with members of the press at Trump Tower in New York City, US. January 10, 2017. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Keith.
i24 News – Syria and Israel are on the verge of signing a “de-escalation” agreement in which Israel will stop its targeted strikes against jihadists and military targets while Syria will agree to not move any machinery or heavy equipment near the Israeli border, US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said on Tuesday.
The statement comes hours after an i24NEWS report that there is a “high likelihood” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Washington next week.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of U.N. General Assembly meetings in New York, Barrack said the agreement would serve as the first step towards the comprehensive security deal that the two countries have been negotiating. “I think everybody is approaching it in good faith,” the official added.
The agreement under discussion has not been formally detailed, but officials familiar with the talks told i24NEWS it includes border security arrangements, counterterrorism coordination, and mechanisms aimed at preventing escalation along the Golan Heights frontier. If signed, it would mark the first formal accord between Israel and Syria in decades.
For Netanyahu, the meeting would represent both a diplomatic gamble and an opportunity. The Israeli Prime Minister has long insisted that any engagement with Syria must address threats from Iranian proxies and ensure Israel’s security along its northern border.
Al-Sharaa, for his part, is seeking international legitimacy and economic relief for his war-battered country, making US sponsorship of the deal critical.
While optimism is rising, both Israeli and Syrian officials caution that sensitive details remain unresolved, and the volatile regional environment could derail the effort at the last minute. Still, the senior Israeli official stressed to i24NEWS that “the chances of the meeting happening are very high.”
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Gaza Aid Flotilla Reports Drone Strikes off Greek Coast
A CCTV footage shows a fire that struck Alma, a vessel of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), in the Tunisian waters off the coast of Tunisia, September 9, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. Photo: GLOBAL SUMUD FLOTILLA/Handout via REUTERS
i24 News – The United Nations has urged an “independent and impartial” investigation into alleged drone attacks on the Global Sumud humanitarian flotilla bound for Gaza.
Thameen Al-Kheetan, spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said a dozen explosions were reported near the vessels on Tuesday evening.
The UN stressed that those responsible for the “violations” must be identified and held accountable.
Flotilla organizers said their ships came under attack while off the coast of Greece, citing explosions, drones, and communications jamming. “Unidentified objects dropped, communications jammed, and explosions heard from several boats,” the Global Sumud Flotilla said in a statement. “We are witnessing these psychological operations firsthand, right now, but we will not be intimidated.”
German activist Yasemin Acar and French MEP Rima Hassan claimed in a video posted on Instagram that five ships had been attacked. In another video, Brazilian activist Thiago Ávila reported that four boats were “targeted by drones dropping devices” just before another explosion was heard in the background.
Italy also condemned the alleged assault. Defense Minister Guido Crosetto announced that an Italian navy vessel had been dispatched to the area to provide assistance if required. “Italy strongly condemns this attack on a humanitarian flotilla,” Crosetto said.
The flotilla, composed of international activists, has been attempting to deliver aid to Gaza amid the ongoing conflict. The source of the alleged drone attacks has not been confirmed.