Pro Palestine protesters surround White House, throw smoke flares, visuals viral on social media, videos

A massive pro-Palestine protest descended outside a fenced White House on Saturday, with demonstrators demanding an end to the Israel-Gaza war and blasting the Joe Biden-led administration’s support for the Jewish nation. Around 30,000 protesters started arriving outside the girded Executive Mansion around noon on Saturday as part of a weekend protest for which security measures have been strengthened outside the White House.

Several visuals of the demonstration flooded social media, showing protesters clad mostly in red outfits, holding up placards with messages – ‘End the siege on Gaza now’, ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘End US Military funding to Israel’ among others.

Some protesters stood in a line draped in a two-mile-long banner around the White House to symbolise the ‘red line’ that Israel crossed with their operation in Rafah, a southern Gaza city where thousands of Palestinians have been taking refuge since the war began.

Some videos on social media showed some protesters igniting and then throwing smoke flares outside the White House gates. Some even tossed flare bombs onto the White House lawn.

The Washington DC Metropolitan Police Department and the Secret Service told the Washington Examiner that no arrests have been made so far. However, the demonstration has led to road closures, especially the route that directly leads to the White House.

The protest happened when Joe Biden and his wife and First Lady Jill Biden were not in the residence as they are in France on a trip to commemorate D-Day.

The US has been plagued by pro-Palestine protests for months, including the university stir that saw demonstrators putting up encampments on the premises of Ivy League schools and mass arrests. The protests also saw marches in Washington and vigils near the White House and blocking of bridges and roads near train stations and airports in many cities.

Meanwhile, at least eight officials have recently quit the Biden administration, citing their opposition to his Israel policy.