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U.S. Capitol Police arrested about 50 people who were demonstrating inside a congressional office building Monday to demand a permanent cease-fire in the Israel-Gaza war.
The demonstration started about 10 a.m. and participants were arrested on charges of illegally protesting inside the Hart Senate Office Building, according to Tim Barber, a Capitol Police spokesman. Forty-nine were arrested under a D.C. code that prohibits crowding, obstructing or incommoding, which is often cited in the arrest of protesters during peaceful planned acts of civil disobedience.
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One man climbed a statue in the atrium and was arrested on charges of resisting arrest, and a woman was also arrested on charges of resisting arrest, Barber said.
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Congress is debating a national security supplemental funding package that includes aid for Ukraine and Israel, as well as humanitarian aid for Gaza and money for U.S.-Mexico border security.
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Israel-Gaza war
(Oded Balilty/AP)
The Israel Defense Forces said it is “fighting fiercely” in Gaza and claimed to have struck at least 250 targets over the weekend, including underground tunnels in Khan Younis, as Gaza’s health system suffers acute supply shortages.
For context: Understand what’s behind the Israel-Gaza war.
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The activists hung a banner that read “The People Choose Life” from Alexander Calder’s “Mountains and Clouds” sculpture in the Hart building and held another banner that equated sending additional aid to Israel with bombing Palestinians, according to videos of the protest. They wore shirts that said “Stop Weapons Now” and “Invest in Life” and chanted “Cease-fire now!” as police used zip-tie handcuffs and escorted people out. Some of the demonstrators had to be carried.
Activists protested in the U.S. Senate Hart Building in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 11 and called for a permanent cease-fire in Israel's war on Gaza. (Video: AP)
The protest was organized by several organizations, including US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace and About Face: Veterans Against the War.
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“Funding more death and destruction of human life is immoral and wrong,” Sandra Tamari, the executive director of Adalah Justice Project, said in a news release. “It makes no one secure, and instead fuels hatred and continued war.”
On Monday afternoon, 18 Jewish elders chained themselves to the White House fence, according to Jewish Voice for Peace. Those on the fence received citations and were released at the scene, according to U.S. Park Police spokesman Sgt. Thomas Twiname.
Israel-Gaza war International pressure on Israel to halt its war in Gaza intensified as Israeli tanks and troops pushed into the center of Khan Younis, the largest city in southern Gaza.
Hostages: More than 100 hostages held in the Gaza Strip have been released. Here’s what we know about the hostages released by Hamas so far.
Oct. 7 attack: Hamas spent more than a year planning its historic assault on Israel. A Post video analysis shows how Hamas exploited vulnerabilities created by Israel’s reliance on technology at the “Iron Wall” to carry out the deadliest attack in Israel’s history. Traders earned millions anticipating the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, a new study found.
Israeli-Palestinian conflict: The Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip has a complicated history. Understand what’s behind the Israel-Gaza war and see the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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Israel-Gaza war
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