Elisha Wiesel, the son of prominent Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel, was told by police officers to put away his Israeli flag during a confrontation with an anti-Israel protestor at Penn Station in Manhattan on Monday.
Wiesel published a video of the incident on his X (formerly Twitter account, writing: "500 Hamas supporters shouting slogans surrounded us. I put on an Israeli flag I carry with me. The cowards hid behind their masks. NYPD insisted I remove the flag as situation was getting dangerous."
In the video, Wiesel was confronted by multiple mask-wearing anti-Israel protestors. Wiesel repeatedly told the protestor who accosted him, whose face was covered by a black mask, to "take off your mask."
The protestor responded by telling Wiesel: “Don’t touch me, buddy."
Wiesel called the protestor a coward for hiding his face. Eventually, an NYPD officer arrived to break up the confrontation before it could become violent. According to Wiesel, the police would not permit him to continue to stand opposite the anti-Israel protestors.
Wiesel has followed in his father's footsteps in advocating for Israel and against hatred. Following the Hamas massacre of October 7 in which 1,200 people were murdered, Wiesel said: "My father was a passionate Zionist who believed Israel was the only guarantee our people had against a second Holocaust."
Actor Alec Baldwin, most famous for his role as Jack Donaghy on the sitcom '30 Rock,' was also accosted by anti-Israel protesters during the demonstration at Penn Station on Monday. Balwin was on his way to teach an acting class when the protestors began demanding that he condemn Israel.
The actor got into a shouting match when he said: “No, I support peace for Gaza.” At least one protestor cursed at Baldwin, who was ultimately escorted out of the area by police officers.
A source with knowledge of the incident told The Messenger: "Alec was on his way to volunteer to teach an acting class. He had no intention of going to the protest and was not involved in any way. He was approached aggressively and repeatedly. The police stepped in to avoid further confrontation so he could make his way to the class safely."