Hundreds of pro-Israel demonstrators rallied in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, on Sunday in support of Israel and denouncing anti-Semitic incidents reported in recent days amid the violence between Hamas and Israel.
Pro-Israel demonstrators were seen waving Israeli and North American flags and signs reading statements such as ‘I stand for Israel, I stand for peace.’
Scuffles erupted when counter-demonstrators appeared in support of the Palestinian people.
Pro-Palestine demonstrator Rasha said, “We don’t know when we are going to hear from them, we don’t know if they are OK,” adding, “They can call home, they can Snapchat, they can Instagram their people, but we can’t. Why not? There is no freedom. They are stuck in an open-air jail cell.”
“There were thousands of people who rallied against Islamophobia. Where are the people? The Jews have been oppressed for over 3,000 years, and this week around the world, we saw attacks against Jews,” said pro-Israel demonstrator Victoria Frankel.
Earlier on the same day, another protest organised by the young Jewish Zionists took place in front of the Federal building, where dozens were seen dancing and listening to speeches such as former Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating anti-Semitism under Trump administration, Elan Carr.
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was agreed upon on Thursday with the mediation of Egypt after 11 days of escalation. According to the respective authorities, the fighting led to 248 fatalities on the Palestinian side and 12 on the Israeli side.