Police and protesters clashed outside Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington on Wednesday night during a demonstration for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, the latest reflection of boiling tensions over the bloody conflict.
Scores of Democratic representatives and candidates, including US House of Representatives Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, were inside the building for a campaign reception when it was interrupted by chanting outside. Protesters said they wanted to block entrances and exits to force politicians to encounter their candlelight vigil and their calls for an end to the fighting.
Many of them wore black shirts saying “Cease Fire Now.”
Photo: AFP
However, the situation swiftly devolved. US Capitol Police said about 150 people were “illegally and violently protesting” in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, but protesters blamed police for the violence, saying officers rushed them without warning.
“It is shameful the way that nonviolent protesters and members of our community were met with violence tonight,” said Dani Noble, who went to Washington from Philadelphia for the demonstration. “It is absolutely shameful.”
Noble said police, some of whom were wearing riot gear, started “pulling on folks that are disabled or have have chronic illnesses, pulling people to the ground.”
Six officers were treated for minor injuries and one protester was arrested for assaulting an officer, Capitol Police said.
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