Protesters say they are targeting Israel real estate marketing programs that also provide information about real estate in settlements to potential buyers.
Monday’s protest in Midwood follows similar demonstrations last week and two protests at synagogues in November and January, one of which targeted a real estate program and the other against an Israel immigration program.
Protesters on Monday waved Hezbollah flags above their heads and chanted, “Globalize the intifada,” “Brick by brick, wall by wall, Israel will fall,” and “Death to the IDF.”
They also held an orange banner that read, “Israel is killing children” and chanted “baby killers” at Jewish counter-protesters, echoing a centuries-old blood insult.
Jewish counter-protesters responded with pro-IDF slogans and shouted in Hebrew, “The Israeli people live”. A handful also sang in Hebrew, “May your village burn”.
Youths riding scooters scolded members of the extremist, anti-Semitic Neturei Karta sect in Yiddish, while others shouted at them, “You’re not even Jewish.” Members of Neturei Karta appear on the front lines of almost every anti-Jewish protest in the city.
As protesters marched, a crowd of neighborhood residents followed them, with lines of police separating the two sides. Police drones and a helicopter were hovering overhead and dozens of officers were at the scene.
There was abuse between the two parties and several scuffles also took place. Counter-protesters mocked the protesters for wearing masks and called them “terrorists”. Protesters said, “Thank you.”
“Where is Sinwar? Where is Nasrallah?” counter-protesters shouted, referring to Hamas and Hezbollah leaders killed by Israel.
Some protesters shouted “Fuck Israel” at residents who opened their doors. Children and families crouched and watched the protest march, and some residents waved Israeli flags from balconies.
One man shouted at the Jews, “Remember Khaybar”, referring to the early Muslims’ battle victory over the Jews, which is sometimes invoked by Hamas.
An elderly man grabbed a protester’s face mask and threw him to the ground, causing his head to hit a tree.
“This is a free country. They have the right to protest but not to hide themselves,” the elderly man said. “I survived Vietnam. What’s that little prick?”
Some fights broke out on the sidelines, and a protester in a keffiyeh pulled a woman back by her hair.
A handful of eggs fell into the anti-Zionist crowd and scattered on the ground. A few minutes later the police took away a teenage Jewish boy.
The protest was led by the Pal-Avada activist group. Organizers from Within Our Lifetime and the Palestinian Youth Movement were also present.
The protest followed a similar demonstration against a real estate program at a Manhattan synagogue last week.
However, that protest took place in a neighborhood with a less dense Jewish population, and fewer counter-protesters turned out. Monday’s event featured roughly equal numbers of protesters and counter-protesters.
Real estate incidents have caused repeated protests in the New York area in recent years. The rallies are particularly extreme because they take place in synagogues or Jewish neighborhoods.
The New York City Council passed legislation last month to better regulate protests at houses of worship, but police have not yet been required to take the new measures mandated by law.
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