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Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrators face off on Manhattan streets following Hamas attack on Israel

(New York Jewish Week) — As Israel continued to clear the Gaza border area of Hamas attackers, and came to grips with an attack that killed 700 people, hundreds of people came to rally in support of the country outside the United Nations on Sunday afternoon.

But for at least one demonstrator, the focus wasn’t on decrying what happened, but making sure to support Israel if it gets criticized for its response to the violence.

“We’re here to show support for Israel which has been attacked in the most savage way by Hamas terrorists,” said Ofer Jacobowitz, who holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship and has lived in the United States since he was a child. “Israel needs all the support they can get. As soon as it retaliates for what happens and tries to end the Hamas terror, it will be demonized in the media.”

Israel has declared war following the outbreak of bloodshed, and — judging by another rally just blocks away — Jacobowitz’s concern was not unfounded. At Times Square, hundreds of demonstrators staged their own gathering to condemn Israel.

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” one chant at the Times Square rally went. “New York City you will see, Palestine will be free.”

The rallies, just blocks apart in the heart of New York City, came one day after a major attack by Hamas on Israel and resulted in multiple showdowns between demonstrators, including a shouting match across 42nd Street as police stood in the middle of the road to maintain their distance.

The rallies reflected the depth of emotion felt by New Yorkers in the wake of the attack, which left hundreds of Israelis dead, thousands wounded and 100 taken captive to Gaza. Israeli officials have promised an extended campaign in Gaza, the territory that Hamas controls.

Organized by an array of far-left groups including the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the Times Square rally drew condemnation from elected officials, including Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and Gov. Kathy Hochul, who called it “abhorrent and morally repugnant.”

One organizer who did not share their name called the violence in Israel a “great escalation of a historic struggle” and “not a terrorist attack,” but instead a manifestation of Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

Irene Siegel, who carried a sign identifying herself as a Jewish supporter of the movement to boycott Israel, said she had been “horrified” by what happened in Israel — just as she had been for a long time about what was happening to Palestinians. She said she had come to the protest out of concern about Israel’s response to the onslaught.

“Palestinians really need people to stand with them right now,” she said. “It’s a really easy moment for militarist rhetoric and escalations around support for Israeli militarism.”

The rally near the United Nations was called by the group End Jew Hatred. (A separate rally held by UnXeptable, the protest movement of Israelis in the United States, took place 40 blocks south around the same time.)

The two constituencies clashed multiple times. Supporters of Israel jeered at the pro-Palestinian rally and sought to drown out its chants by singing “Hatikvah,” Israel’s national anthem, loudly from across the street.

Later, pro-Palestinian demonstrators approached the people who had come to the End Jew Hatred rally, screaming, “Hey hey, ho ho, Israel has got to go” from one side of the street while people waving Israeli flags on the other side screamed chants including, “Israel is peace.”

The pro-Palestinian rally had been promoted by New York City’s chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, which has long taken anti-Israel stances including asking City Council candidates whether they would commit not to traveling to Israel.

Some in attendance said they supported socialism but opposed Hamas’ attack on Israelis and had come to make sure their perspectives were represented.

“Can we ever condone civilian targets? Never,” said Lea Sherman, a Socialist Workers Party candidate for New Jersey’s General Assembly. “Socialists are opposed to antisemitism and Jew hatred. This has nothing to do with socialism.”

Hannah Simpson, a writer and activist on transgender issues who is Jewish, came to Times Square waving a rainbow Israeli flag.

“I was tremendously dismayed when I saw that the Democratic Socialists of America had co-sponsored the Palestine rally today,” she said. “It baffles me when I think of Hamas as being neither democratic nor socialist, nor anything but reprehensible, especially to members of the LGBT community within the Gaza Strip.”

Simpson added, “I think it’s important to show that New York is not letting this go unanswered.”


The post Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrators face off on Manhattan streets following Hamas attack on Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Trump Announces India and Pakistan ‘Agreed to a Full and Immediate Ceasefire’

US President Donald Trump attends the annual White House Easter Egg Roll, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, April 21, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Leah Millis

i24 NewsUS President Donald Trump on Saturday announced that India and Pakistan had agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire. “Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence,” he posted on social media. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar confirmed the ceasefire, saying Saudi Arabia and Turkey also played an important role in facilitating the deal.

The ceasefire follows weeks of clashes and cross-border missile and drone strikes triggered by a gun massacre of Indian tourists last month.

New Delhi has blamed jihadists from the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba, a UN-designated terrorist organization. Pakistan denies the charge.

Dozens of civilians have been killed on both sides.

The post Trump Announces India and Pakistan ‘Agreed to a Full and Immediate Ceasefire’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Latest Columbia Scandal Sees Over 65 Students Suspended, Including Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Daughter

Pro-Palestinian protesters are detained by NYPD after taking part in a demonstration at Butler Library on the Columbia University campus in New York, U.S., May 7, 2025. REUTERS/Dana Edwards

i24 NewsIn the latest antisemitism scandal at the prestigious New York institution, Columbia University suspended dozens of students and barred from campus alumni and others who took part in a chaotic and violent anti-Israel incident inside the school’s main library earlier in the week.

On May 7, the mask-clad mob forced its way into the library, injuring two public safety officers in the process. Once inside, they vandalized property, adorning the premises with Palestinian flags, scrawling “Columbia will burn” on a glass case, and declaring the library a “liberated zone.”

Some 75 protesters were arrested after refusing to comply with police directives, including Ramona Sarsgaard, daughter of Hollywood A-lister Maggie Gyllenhaal and actor Peter Sarsgaard.

The Ivy League university in Manhattan declined to say how long the disciplinary measures would be in place, saying only that the decisions are pending further investigation.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said his office will review the visa status of those who participated in the library takeover for possible deportation.

The post Latest Columbia Scandal Sees Over 65 Students Suspended, Including Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Daughter first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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US, Iran to Hold 4th Round of Nuclear Talks on Eve of Trump’s Gulf Tour

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi looks on before a meeting with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 26, 2024. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS

i24 NewsThe United States and Iran will hold a fourth round of nuclear talks Sunday in Oman, officials said, just ahead of a visit to the region by President Donald Trump.

Trump, who will visit three other Gulf Arab monarchies next week, has voiced hope for reaching a deal with Tehran to curb its nuclear program that would avert an Israeli military strike on Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities that could ignite a wider war. He has refused, however, to rule out military action in the event the talks come to naught.

Iran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi said that Oman, the mediator in the talks, had proposed Sunday as the date and both sides accepted it.

“Negotiations are moving ahead and naturally, the more we advance, the more consultations we have, and the more time the delegations need to examine the issues,” he was quoted as saying by regime media. “But what’s important is that we are moving forward so that we gradually get into the details.”

Steve Witkoff, Trump’s personal friend serving as his globe-trotting negotiator, will take part in the talks.

American and Iranian representatives voiced optimism after the previous talks that took place in Oman and Rome, saying there was a friendly atmosphere despite the two countries’ decades of enmity.

However the two sides are not believed to have thrashed out the all-important technical details, and basic questions remain.

The post US, Iran to Hold 4th Round of Nuclear Talks on Eve of Trump’s Gulf Tour first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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