Pro-Palestinian protesters staged a sit-in in the lobby of the New York Times building in Manhattan on Thursday, calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and accusing the news media of favoring Israel over Hamas.
The staged sit-in started around 5 p.m. Thursday, when a group called “Writers Bloc” led protesters in reading off a list of names of thousands of Palestinians who died in Gaza since the war began early last month, the Associated Press reported. Among those names included at least 36 journalists who lost their lives on the job since the October 7 terror attack committed by Hamas. The demonstration lasted for about an hour.
Thirty-nine journalists and media workers have been confirmed dead as of Thursday, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists which tracks the number of journalist casualties in the Middle Eastern conflict. Another 24 journalists were either reported to be injured, missing, or arrested in the last month.
HAPPENING NOW: 100+ journalists, artists, and cultural workers calling themselves Writer’s Bloc take over @nytimes lobby in NYC to demand Editorial Board call for ceasefire in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/xIq2kNpfkE
— Writers Against the War on Gaza (@wawog_now) November 9, 2023
The protesters claimed the media was complicit “in laundering genocide” of the Palestinian people and demanded that the editorial board of the New York Times publicly support a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. Those in attendance also scattered editions of a mock newspaper, titled “The New York War Crimes,” in the lobby and painted the word “Lies” across the building’s doors.
The demonstration was deemed “peaceful,” as described in an email sent to New York Times employees by the publication’s head of corporate security who said the entrances weren’t blocked. It was unclear if anyone was arrested at the time, according to several reports.
There have been several other mass cease-fire protests in New York City this week, including one involving students walking out of school and another taking place at the State of Liberty. Two weeks ago, hundreds of Pro-Palestinian protesters stormed the Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan, an action that inconvenienced rush-hour travelers and led to dozens of arrests. Fortunately, no trains were delayed that Friday afternoon.
Anti-Israel protests have only grown in frequency across U.S. cities in recent weeks. Last Saturday, tens of thousands of people gathered in Washington, D.C., to call for a cease-fire on Israel’s part to prevent the deaths of more Palestinians.
The latest casualty numbers show over 11,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, since the October 7 massacre of about 1,400 Israelis. Israel quickly retaliated against Hamas after the largest killing of Jews in one day since the Holocaust.