'Death to America' chants raised in massive pro-Palestine protest in New York

A major pro-Palestine protest erupted in New York on April 15, with supporters chanting death to America and burning the American flag outside the Brooklyn Borough Hall.

Videos of the protest went viral on social media as hundreds of anti-Israeli protesters flocked to Lower Manhattan.

The agitators then swarmed to Brooklyn Bridge causing havoc and forcing the officials to temporarily shut down both lanes of the bridge.

Dozens of people were arrested on the bridge as a Department of Correction bus waited at the bottom of the Brooklyn side of the bridge to transport detainees.

Similar protests were held across the United States and around the world, after the group A15 Action called for coordinating a "multi-city blockade... in solidarity with Palestine."

"In each city, we will identify and blockade major choke points in the economy, focusing on points of production and circulation with the aim of causing the most economic impact," the group said on its website.

In Philadelphia, protesters blocked roads and shut down highway traffic heading into Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, forcing some passengers to make their way by foot to catch their flights.

Protests were also planned in Canada, Italy, South Korea, Colombia and Belgium, while the X account for A15 posted photos of demonstrations in Greece, Spain and Australia.

Demonstrators who were blocking traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge held a banner reading "Stop the world for Gaza."

"We know that money is really what speaks to (elected leaders)," an organizer, who gave her name as Hayshawiya, told the San Francisco Chronicle from the bridge, adding they would stay until the police forced them out.

The California Highway Patrol said on X that officers were making arrests before announcing that traffic had reopened in both directions just before 12:30 pm (1930 GMT).

Monday's protests come as US President Joe Biden faces continued criticism from within his own party about Washington's continued support of Israel.

(With AFP inputs)

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