Palestinian Flags Raised in US Capital as American Flags Burned

Protesters enraged by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s address to Congress burned U.S. flags and raised Palestinian flags outside Union Station in Washington, D.C.

Netanyahu’s visit to Washington on Wednesday has provoked a series of dramatic demonstrations from protesters opposed to Israel’s ongoing military assault in Gaza. Earlier in the day, maggots were dumped on a banquet table at Netanyahu’s hotel, while fountains around the capital city were dyed blood red.

The protests escalated in the afternoon, with a group outside Washington’s train station removing U.S. flags and replacing them with flags of Palestine. Videos shared on social media show the protesters burning an American flag and an effigy of Netanyahu, with some dancing in celebration as music plays.

“Anti-Israel protestors burned an effigy with an American flag wrapped around it outside of Union Station,” Gary M. Collins, a journalist for the conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group, wrote while sharing a video of the moment to X, formerly Twitter.

“The effigy collapsed to a loud cheers and shouts of joy as anti-Israel protestors danced around the burning pile,” he added. “Towards the end of the dancing, a man with a white collared shirt grabbed the burning American flag, and was chased by at least a dozen protestors.”

The U.S. Park Police revoked a protest permit for the area a short time later, while Amtrak informed customers of expected delays due to disruptions caused by “protest activity.”

The chaotic scene provoked an avalanche of outrage from current and former public officials and others on social media.

“This is an insult to every American who has worn the flag on their arm and died for our nation,” former Maryland Governor Larry Hogan wrote on X. “It’s disgusting and disgraceful.”

“Don’t think for a second that these protestors are just anti-Israel,” wrote David M. Friedman, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. “They represent a far greater threat to America.”

“Anti-American, pro-Hamas, antisemitic terrorists are chanting allahu akbar, vandalizing property and burning American flags in DC,” former Republican New York lawmaker and gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin wrote. “Police should immediately intervene and make arrests! The line of protected free speech has indisputably been crossed.”

“I just took this picture from my Senate office. Less than a mile from the U.S. Capitol, pro-Hamas protestors have taken down and burned AMERICAN FLAGS at Union Station to fly Palestinian flags. Absolutely SHAMEFUL,” wrote Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama.

Protesters outside the station also spray-painted graffiti reading ” Hamas,” “Free Gaza” and “All Zionists Are Bastards” on the Christopher Columbus Memorial Fountain.

Matt Gregory, a reporter for Washington CBS affiliate WUSA, wrote that U.S. Park Police were “taking down the Palestine flags at Columbia Circle” while sharing images on X in the late afternoon.

At around the same time, Fox News correspondent Griff Jenkins wrote on X that “at least a dozen protesters have been arrested as we continue to see sporadic clashes w police around the Capitol and Union Station.”

Newsweek reached out for comment to the U.S. Park Police via online contact form on Wednesday evening.

The war in Gaza began after Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, killing approximately 1,200 Israelis and taking 250 hostages. About 120 hostages remain captive in Gaza, with a third of them believed to be dead, according to Israeli officials.

Meanwhile, over 39,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military operation, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

Update 07/24/24 05:38 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.