Police say they have arrested some 638 protesters across the five boroughs since the Israel-Hamas war erupted last month.
According to Chief of Patrol John Chell, protests continue to pop up each day in the Big Apple since Hamas invaded Israel on Oct. 7. Chell reports there have been a total of 674 demonstrations with 286 of those being directly related to pro-Israel and pro-Palestine causes.
When the bloody conflict first broke out, the NYPD was mobilized in order to combat potential lone-wolf acts of terror as well as keep supporters on both sides separated during protests. Aside from a small number of exceptions, law enforcement reports that they have been able to keep protesters from clashing.
Chief Chell also calculates that New York has seen 130,000 protesters since last month, stating that the amount differs at any given day or protest.
“They can vary from 40 students to 15,000,” Chief Chell said. “There can be four or five [protests] a day.”
The number of protests each day varies by day depending on if the demonstration is taking place midweek or at the weekend, due to those also attending school and work. Still, since Oct.7 police say 638 protesters have been cuffed as of Nov. 21. Chief Chell stated that the majority of those arrests result in court summons for civil disobedience.
Police brass also say they are prepared for any protests potentially attempting to disrupt the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Chief Chell said that they are gathering intel minute by minute and will have extra resources on hand.
