Mamdani Hesitates as Hamas Sympathizers Protest Outside a Queens Synagogue

A protest by a pro-Palestinian group that chanted slogans in support of Hamas outside a synagogue on Thursday evening is raising new questions about security for Jewish New Yorkers after a series of moves to revoke protections by the new mayor, Zohran Mamdani.The protesters, organized by the Palestinian Assembly for Liberation, which goes by Pal-Awda NY/NJ, waved Hamas flags and carried signs claiming Israel is stolen land. They stood outside the Young Israel of Kew Gardens Hills synagogue at Queens during an event the synagogue was hosting on owning real estate in Israel. The synagogue stands at the same intersection as a public school and a Yeshiva school for children with individualized learning needs. With many in the crowd wearing masks, they chanted, “Say it loud and clear, we support Hamas here!” and “Long live October 7th.” It was Pal-Awda NY/NJ’s second protest at that location in the last year and a half. Several New York Police Department officers stood in between them and counterprotesters from the neighborhood.Mr. Mamdani’s first week on the job was marked by revoking his predecessor’s adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism and the city’s ban on boycotts, divestments, or sanctions against Israel. The mayor also revoked an order requiring the New York Police to review protections for houses of worship, which the city’s former mayor, Eric Adams, ordered after an anti‑Israel protest outside a Manhattan synagogue last November organized by Pal-Awda.Mr. Adams posted Friday that Hamas supporters are not welcome in the city. “The chants heard in the heart of the Jewish community in Kew Gardens, Queens, in support of Hamas were vile and deliberate acts of intimidation meant to terrorize our Jewish community,” he wrote. “NYC and state elected officials must condemn this immediately and unequivocally. Anything less is a failure of leadership. Silence leads to action. We must say it loud and clear: HAMAS AND THEIR SUPPORTERS ARE NOT WELCOME HERE.”Governor Kathy Hochul, who appeared with Mr. Mamdani on Thursday to introduce an event announcing a universal free child care program, also said the chants were unwelcome.“Hamas is a terrorist organization that calls for the genocide of Jews. No matter your political beliefs, this type of rhetoric is disgusting, it’s dangerous, and it has no place in New York,” she posted on X Friday morning.Mr. Mamdani responded to the incident by first equating the protesters and counter protesters. Late Friday, he added, “Chants in support of a terrorist organization have no place in our city. We will continue to ensure New Yorkers’ safety entering and exiting houses of worship as well as the constitutional right to protest.”Pal-Awda is one of many organizations, including Students for Justice in Palestine at CCNY, that call Israel an illegal colonial power. The group took credit for the cancellation of another program the night before hosted by emigration group Nefesh B’Nefesh to encourage Jews to make aliyah, or move to Israel permanently.Its vocal support for Hamas, however, has raised concerns that terrorist sympathizers are gaining confidence in their intimidation tactics. A New York Assemblyman, Sam Berger, who represents the district, said though the 107th precinct cordoned off a security perimeter, the protesters forced a daycare, two elementary schools, and a house of worship to close early, leaving many to question how that was allowed. “Our institutions should not have to be put in this position,” Mr. Berger said.“A terrorist group that murdered civilians and brought down the Twin Towers and these idiots are cheering for them in our city,” added actor Michael Rapaport, who has announced his intention to run for mayor in 2029. “Hamas would destroy you if they ever got near you Kathy Hochul, Zoron The Moron what are you going to do about this? This is dangerous and it will end badly if it’s ignored, something bad is gonna happen,” he continued.

Mamdani Hesitates as Hamas Sympathizers Protest Outside a Queens Synagogue

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