“It was pretty surreal that this protest took place outside of exhibition commemorating hundreds of lives of people that were lost,” the spokesperson, Michelle Rojas, told CNN Monday. The exhibition commemorates those killed at the Nova Music Festival in Israel during the October 7 attacks by Hamas. At least 260 people died during the festival attack, according to Israeli rescue service Zaka. Some attendees were taken hostage, seen in social media videos being seized by their armed captors.
It’s unclear exactly how many protesters were arrested. New York City mayor Eric Adams called the demonstration “pure anti-Semitism.” “Any New Yorker who stands for peace cannot stand next to those waving Hamas and Hezbollah flags, especially at an exhibit commemorating the victims of the Nova Music Festival massacre,” he said in a post on X. “The NYPD has overseen thousands of peaceful protests, but it is our duty to arrest anyone who breaks the law,” Adams added.