A Brroklyn woman has alleged that a mob of Orthodox Jewish men chased her, kicked her, spat at her and threw objects at her after mistaking her as a participant in a protest against Israel’s far-right security minister. The assault was recorded by a bystander near the global headquarters of the Chabad Lubavitch movement in Crown Heights on Thursday, April 24. Clashes took place between pro-Palestinian activists and members of the neighbourhood’s Orthodox Jewish community following an appearance by Itamar Ben-Gvir.
This protest was one of many other similar protests against Ben-Gvir held in recent days. The ultranationalist settler leader is reportedly embarking on his first US state visit since joining Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet three years ago. He was convicted in Israel in the past of racist incitement and support for a terrorist group. He has urged his supporters to confront Palestinians and assert “Jewish Power.”
‘I felt sheer terror’
The victim of last week’s assault, in her 30s, is a resident of the neighbourhood. She told the Associated Press that she got to know about the protest after she heard police helicopters over her apartment, and walked over to see what was happening. It was around 10.30 pm and most of the crowd had already dispersed. The victim said she covered her face with a scarf as she did not wish to be filmed.
“As soon as I pulled up my scarf, a group of 100 men came over immediately and encircled me,” said the woman. “They were shouting at me, threatening to rape me, chanting ‘death to Arabs’. I thought the police would protect me from the mob, but they did nothing to intervene.”
{{/usCountry}}“As soon as I pulled up my scarf, a group of 100 men came over immediately and encircled me,” said the woman. “They were shouting at me, threatening to rape me, chanting ‘death to Arabs’. I thought the police would protect me from the mob, but they did nothing to intervene.”
{{/usCountry}}One police officer tried to escort the woman to safety as the chats grew, but hundreds of men and boys kept following them, jeering in Hebrew and English. Two of the men kicked the woman in the back, and another threw a traffic cone at her head. A fourth man pushed a trash can into her. “This is America,” one of the men can be heard saying in a video shared online. “We got Israel. We got an army now.”
At one point, the woman and the cop were almost cornered against a building. “I felt sheer terror,” the woman said. “I realized at that point that I couldn’t lead this mob of men to my home. I had nowhere to go. I didn’t know what to do. I was just terrified.”
The woman and the officer walked several blocks before the cops hustled her into a police vehicle. One man yelled, “Get her!” before the crowd cheered as she was driven away.
The woman, who has been a New Yorker all her life, said she was left with bruises and was traumatised after the incident. She stressed that the episode should be investigated as an act of hate.
“I’m afraid to move around the neighborhood where I’ve lived for a decade,” she said. “It doesn’t seem like anyone in any position of power really cares.”
‘None of this is acceptable’
A police spokesperson later confirmed that one person was arrested and five others were issued summons after the demonstration, The Guardian reported. However, they did not reveal if anyone was charged in connection to the woman’s assault.
Mayor Eric Adams later said that police were investigating “a series of incidents stemming from clashing protests on Thursday that began when a group of anti-Israel protesters surrounded the Chabad Lubavitch world headquarters – a Jewish house of worship – in Brooklyn.” He added that cops had spoken to a different woman on the pro-Palestinian side of the protest, who was allegedly harassed by counter-protesters and was left injured.
“Let me be clear: none of this is acceptable, in fact, it is despicable,” Adams said. “New York City will always be a place where people can peacefully protest, but we will not tolerate violence, trespassing, menacing, or threatening.”