Gaza protesters block New York bridges, tunnel

NEW YORK — Dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked three arterial bridges and a tunnel connecting Manhattan with the rest of New York and surrounding areas on Monday, in a coordinated action protesting the Hamas-Israel war.

New York has seen dozens of protests, both pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel, since October 7.

Protesters locked themselves to tyres, chairs and each other on the Brooklyn Bridge, which links the borough of the same name with the Manhattan financial district.

"It's important because we need a ceasefire. It's important to disrupt day-to-day activity to show how important this is, to end the siege in Gaza," said protester Olivia Levine, 31, an actor and writer.

"Hopefully actions scale up. Day-to-day activity needs to be scaled up to secure a ceasefire and the end of occupation. This is just the start."

Dozens of police, some wielding bolt cutters and white plastic cable ties, encircled a group of detained protesters who were lined up on the bridge for processing.

A crowd who gathered in support of those who blocked the bridge's Brooklyn-bound lanes chanted "free, free Palestine", while some filmed police working to cut activists out of the devices used to anchor themselves to the road.

Dozens of protesters were detained for blocking traffic at the entrance to the Holland Tunnel, which connects New York to neighbouring New Jersey, an AFP correspondent saw.

Similar actions were staged at the Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges that link Manhattan Island to Brooklyn.

The protests came shortly after the morning rush hour and caused backed-up traffic across the city.

Police said the protests lasted just over an hour and had been cleared after 11am (16:00 GMT), but did not confirm the number of arrests.

Three months into the war, at least 23,084 people have been killed in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the territory’s health ministry.