Mary RasuraPro-Palestinian crowd outnumbered by police as Israeli prime minister’s Mar-a-Lago visit shuts down Southern Boulevard.
When Donald Trump invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu to Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw pledged law and order would be paramount. Anyone blocking Netanyahu’s motorcade, he said, would be arrested.
With a show of force holding dozens of deputies in reserve while placing dozens more, many with bicycles, every 5 feet along the rally zone, peace prevailed Friday.
Protesters, numbering about 70, were allowed to march, chant and wave signs along the sidewalk on the west side of the Southern Boulevard bridge to Palm Beach. But they never entered the road as Netanyahu’s car sped past in a heavily fortified group of more than 20 vehicles, including two Broward County Fire-Rescue vehicles.
Of note: Netanyahu landed in Fort Lauderdale, not Palm Beach International Airport as planned.
A small group of counter protesters waved Israeli and Trump flags and shouted insults from the south side of Southern Boulevard.
The pro-Palestinian group called for U.S. tax dollars to stop paying for Israel’s “war machine” and demanded a cease-fire in the Gaza war.
Many were dressed in traditional Arab garb such as the hijab and keffiyeh, a black and white headdress that has become a symbol for Palestinian independence.
What they said: An organizer led chants through a bullhorn of “Netanyahu, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide!” “There is only one solution, intifada revolution!” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
One counterprotester responded, “Jump in the river then!”
The men, women and children in the crowd waved signs saying “Glory to the Martyrs,” “Go Home War Criminal” and one presenting an image of Aaron Bushnell, the 25-year-old U.S. airman who lit himself on fire in February in front of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C.
A protester who said his name is Ali came from Port St. Lucie but, like many protesters, refused to fully identify himself.
“We live a good life in this country and I’m grateful for that. But I’m also a human and I need to speak up for what’s wrong. We don’t stand for that, America does not stand for that. And I don’t know why they’re not standing up to it now, it doesn’t make sense,” he said.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrator Rose Boutros remarked on the police show of force: “Do you like the ratio of one cop for every two people?” she asked.
(Joel Engelhardt contributed to this story)
