New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Friday condemned the brutal attack on a Jewish man in Times Square and the melee that erupted there between pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian Arab demonstrators, The New York Post reported.
“It’s absolutely disgusting and unacceptable,” de Blasio told was quoted as having told WNYC host Brian Lehrer on Friday during his weekly appearance on the public radio station.
“We had a man viciously beaten simply because he appeared to some individuals to be Jewish. We had folks throwing very potent fireworks and creating harm to others and burning at least one person. This is unacceptable,” he added.
The Mayor said there had already been arrests in the hours since the Thursday evening violence and added that more arrests were on the way.
Officers have nabbed 26 people so far for their roles in the brawls between the dueling protests and one arrest was pending for the hate-fueled attack on the unidentified Jewish man, a police spokesman told The Post.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo also condemned the attack and violence.
“I unequivocally condemn these brutal attacks on visibly Jewish New Yorkers and we will not tolerate anti-Semitic violent gang harassment and intimidation,” he said. “Justice needs to be done.”
New York Attorney General Letitia James condemned the violence as well.
“There is no place for anti-Semitism or hate of any kind against anyone in New York. We must work together to support all our diverse communities and bring an end to abhorrent attacks that hurt us all,” she tweeted.
Thursday’s incidents were the second time in the past week that clashes broke out in Manhattan between pro-Palestinian Arab and pro-Israeli protesters.
Last Tuesday, thousands of protestors scuffled during parallel demonstrations in New York City, with police in Manhattan erecting metal barricades between the two groups.
New York police officers attempted to keep the groups separated, but videos posted to social media showed pro-Palestinian protestors breaking free through barricades and police in an attempt to reach and physically assault pro-Israel demonstrators.
On Wednesday, Jews were attacked by anti-Israel activists in Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)