A protest against Israel turned violent Tuesday night as demonstrators flooded the predominantly Orthodox Jewish neighborhood of Borough Park in Brooklyn. Police arrested several pro-Hamas protesters after dozens of them, chanting “Zionists go to hell” and waving Palestinian flags, gathered to oppose an Israel land sale event.
The event was held at 36th Street and 14th Avenue.
Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY), one of Israel’s few friends in the Democratic party, tweeted: “It should come as a shock to no one that the pro-Hamas mob targeting Jews and promising to ‘flood’ Boro Park has descended into violence. Violence is not a bug but a feature of the so-called ‘Free Palestine’ movement, which has no desire to free Palestinians from Hamas.”
It should come as a shock to no one that the pro-Hamas mob targeting Jews and promising to “flood” Boro Park has descended into violence.
Violence is not a bug but a feature of the so-called “Free Palestine” movement, which has no desire to free Palestinians from Hamas. pic.twitter.com/RLZZEb4GFg
— Ritchie Torres (@RitchieTorres) February 19, 2025
The Palestinian Assembly for Liberation (PAL)-Awda NY/NJ tweeted on Tuesday: “FLOOD BORO PARK TO PROTEST STOLEN LAND REAL ESTATE EVENT TUE. 2/18 AT 6 PM.”
Around 100 protesters gathered in a designated area, voicing their opposition to the land sale. At the same time, approximately 250 Orthodox Jewish men confronted them from a distance, the two groups being separated by police barricades.
Eventually, as was to be expected, the two camps clashed, and since there were more angry Jews than angry Jew haters on hand, the pro-Hamas folks were a little worse for wear.
Former Assemblyman Dov Hikind tweeted:
Wanted to see their faces. Most wear masks though pic.twitter.com/MeQuNaY9O8
— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) February 19, 2025
Hikind couldn’t help sounding a nostalgic note:
What a feeling it was to be back in the district I represented for 36 years.
Loud and proud with Jews in unity.
Hamas lovers don’t scare us.
Only afraid of God. pic.twitter.com/cpBG5B9Vp4— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) February 19, 2025
Tensions ran high as the demonstrators were yelling offensive slogans such as “How many kids did you kill today?” to the beat of a drum, at the neighborhood residents who almost certainly hadn’t killed any kids that Tuesday.
As you can tell from the videos, an inevitable contingency of Neturei Karta was on hand, to support the enemies of the Jews.
Finally, an introspective thought: the pro-Hamas demonstrators also yelled, “Settlers, settlers go back home, Palestine is ours alone,” and I for one agree with the first part, namely that the good Jews of Borough Park should settle in our home, Eretz Israel. As to the second part, well, talk is cheap.
