Chi Oss\u00e9, Alexa Avil\u00e9s and Jennifer Guti\u00e9rrez among those arrested in Midtown during a protest following the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin at the U.N. General Assembly.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of protesters gathered in Midtown on Sept. 24 as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the United Nations General Assembly. The protest led to the arrest of activists, actors and politicians including New York City council members, as reported by Patch<\/a>.<\/p>\n Among those arrested were Council Members Chi Oss\u00e9, Alexa Avil\u00e9s and Jennifer Guti\u00e9rrez, all representing districts in Brooklyn. According to The Guardian<\/a>, these politicians were three of more than 100 people arrested outside the U.N. building.\u00a0<\/p>\n The local politicians did not hold back in their responses to both their arrest nor Netanyahu\u2019s presence in New York.<\/p>\n \u201cWe won\u2019t be quiet with a war criminal in our city,\u201d Avil\u00e9s wrote<\/a> on social media the afternoon of the protest. \u201cNYC is for the people and our people will not be complicit in genocide.\u201d<\/p>\n Similarly, Oss\u00e9 shared a photo of his arrest <\/a>on social media. \u201cFree Palestine,\u201d he wrote. \u201cNetanyahu burn in hell.\u201d<\/p>\n Assembly Member Emily Gallagher,\u00a0New York Senate-elect Aber Kawas,\u00a0and state legislative candidates Christian Celeste Tate, David Orkin and Illapa Sairitupac were also among those arrested at the protest.<\/p>\n During the protest, organized by Jewish Voice for Peace<\/a>, attendees\u00a0called for an end to U.S. military support for Israel.<\/p>\n Inside the U.N. conference, dozens of delegates walked out of the hall in protest, while Netanyahu called the walk-out a case of \u201cmind-blowing hypocrisy,\u201d Patch reported.<\/p>\n Following Hamas\u2019s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which resulted in the death of approximately 1,200 people, the Palestinian death toll in Gaza alone has exceeded 73,000<\/a>.<\/p>\n Protests come after a campaign promise by Mayor Mamdani to arrest Netanyahu in New York City. His promise, however, was followed by an announcement in July<\/a> that despite exploring legal avenues to execute the International Criminal Court\u2019s warrant for Netanyahu\u2019s arrest, the city does not have the legal authority to do so.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, the mayor\u2019s criticism of the state of Israel and the role of U.S. politics in genocide played an outsized role<\/a> in his election.<\/p>\n Protests, the election of Mayor Mamdani and local politicians\u2019 refusal to remain neutral are examples of the broader fabric of New York City\u2019s politics: As of last year, sympathy in the city for Palestinians outweighs support for Israel, as reported by The New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n