Jan 15, 2009 4:52 pm US/Pacific
9 Arrested In SF Israeli Consulate Protest
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) ―
-
-
Police take one of the protesters into custody.
CBS
San Francisco police arrested nine people Thursday morning who were blocking the doorway to the Israeli Consulate to protest military attacks in Gaza, according to the Police Department.
Around 8:30 a.m., the protesters wearing black shirts that read, "Stop Israeli war crimes in Gaza'' locked themselves together with chains and the doors of the 465 Montgomery St. building with bike locks that all had to be removed by fire personnel. They blocked both the inside and outside of the entrance until police arrested them in a demonstration that lasted about two hours, protest organizer Harris Kornstein said.
Supporters of the protest who were not arrested were chanting "One, two, three, four. We don't want your racist war,'' and "Free, free Gaza. Free, free Palestine.''
Kornstein said, "We're primarily demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza. We also want the U.S. to stop providing Israel with financial and military support.''
Deputy Consulate General Ishmael Khaldi said he thinks people should be able to express their opinions but the protest, which prevented employees from at least 25 businesses from getting inside, does not present any solutions.
"I'm scared for our safety. I'm coming here to do cultural exchange,'' Khaldi, who has been in the U.S. for two years, said. "What's a diplomat supposed to do? Hide? Be afraid? Not to go to specific places because people won't shake his hand?''
Kornstein said he believed the protest was successful because it sent a message and it was not meant to be a personal attack.
"I would say that we're only targeting individuals who work for the government of a nation who have been killing. It's a call to his sense of humanity and a call for justice,'' he said.
Khaldi disagreed with the success of the protest.
"They are threatening and unfair,'' he said. "Have them speak to us like normal people.''
The first group of five people who were arrested were inside the building's lobby, blocking the doorway and were charged with trespassing, police said.
The second group of four was arrested for obstructing the doorway, police said.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Bay City News contributed to this report.)
CBS 5 CrimeWatch
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Comments