More than 300 pro-Palestine protesters were arrested Monday after they blocked tunnels and bridges on both sides of Lower Manhattan during the morning rush hour.
Police officials tallied the final arrest count as 325. So many arrests were made during the latest stunt to garner attention to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, sources familiar with the incidents said, that officers were forced to pack the arrested onto MTA buses.
The coordinated disruption unfolded at around 9:40 a.m. on Jan. 8, with various groups of between 20 and 50 people working in tandem at different locations throughout the city.
Quickly barreling out of vehicles, the groups blocked traffic at the entrance to the Holland Tunnel, Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, and Williamsburg Bridge.
But instead of rallying stuck motorists to their cause, they just made them mad.
Some drivers attempted to take action into their own hands by trying to push the protesters off the roadway while cops gathered resources to make the arrests.
While the NYPD responded to the East River bridges, the Port Authority Police Department responded to those blocking New Jersey-bound lanes of the Holland Tunnel. There, traffic was brought to a crawl until Port Authority Police arrested some 120 protesters.
Lanes were reopened in the Holland Tunnel and on all bridges by about 11:15 a.m. Monday, according to NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell.
“Today protesters blocked 3 bridges and the Holland Tunnel at 9:40 AM. By 11:15 AM we are able to clear the locations with 325 arrests along with @PANYNJ. In lieu of summons, many protestors will face misdemeanor charges with a desk appearance ticket,” Chief Chell wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Monday’s staged event was the latest high-profile pro-Palestine protest action in the Big Apple. Late last year, protesters marched through Grand Central Station, bringing the transit hub to a screeching halt. They also attempted disrupt the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting.
Protesters are continuing to call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, arguing that innocent civilians are losing their lives over the attacks brought about by the terrorist group Hamas.
