WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — The White House condemned the “heinous” Labor Day anti-Israel protests in New York City, where several demonstrators were photographed gripping Hamas flags.
“As President [Joe] Biden and Vice President [Kamala] Harris have said, there is absolutely no place in America for the poison of Antisemitism – none,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said in a statement to NewsNation. “They and the entire Biden-Harris Administration condemn any individual associating with the repugnant terrorist organization Hamas.”
“It is especially heinous to express support for Hamas on the same day as the funeral for an innocent American hostage who they brutally murdered,” Bates added. “This is a moment for all Americans to come together and stand against Antisemitism and against the sickening hate and evil that Hamas represents.”
Thousands of protesters flooded Union Square in New York City on Monday to “stand against repression of Palestine,” Within Our Lifetime, the organizers of the event, posted on X.
Four people were arrested, according to the New York Police Department.
The rally comes a day after the Israeli military announced that six hostages had been killed in captivity. Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, an Israeli military spokesperson, said the bodies had been recovered in an underground tunnel in Rafah.
“They were brutally murdered by Hamas terrorists shortly before we reached them,” Hagari noted during a media briefing.
Among the captives declared dead was American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, whose parents, Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin, had traveled the world advocating the release of all hostages.
President Biden told reporters Monday he was “very close” to presenting a final cease-fire and hostage release deal. After a brief moment, he added that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not doing enough on the issue.
NewsNation has reached out to Within our Lifetime for comment.
