US Jewish groups are condemning an anti-Israel display at Union Station in Washington, DC, on Thursday.
The display portrayed US and Israeli leaders drinking the blood of Gazans, echoing the blood libel that has been used against Jews throughout history.
The protest featured five prominent leaders in suits wearing masks representing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Ruibo, former President Joe Biden and former Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
The leaders were covered in fake blood, sat at a long table set with bloodied doll limbs, glasses of red liquid and plates of what looked like organ meat. They are seen using Israeli flags as napkins as they mop blood from their faces.
A “menu” that was placed next to the table and titled, “Israel’s Friendsgiving Dinner,” included items such as “Gaza children’s limbs,” “stolen organs,” “illegally harvested skin,” and for a drink, “Gaza’s spilled blood.”
The American Jewish Committee denounced the display, saying, “Blood libel was on full display today at Union Station in Washington, D.C. Dressed up as ‘activism’ and ‘performance art,’ this was nothing less than the revival of one of the oldest and most dangerous antisemitic tropes in history.”
“Blood libel has fueled violence, persecution, and massacres of Jews for centuries. Seeing it resurface in our nation’s capital is both horrifying and unacceptable,” said the AJC.
“At a time of rising antisemitism, leaders and authorities must condemn this display and ensure that public spaces are not used to spread dangerous hate.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) said, “The so-called ‘Friendsgiving’ display that was outside and inside of Union Station in DC yesterday was nothing less than abhorrent. The antisemitic blood libel was on full display - featuring representations of the Israeli Prime Minister and American officials from the current and past administrations at a table with fake bloody organs marked ‘harvested organs’ in plates and cups of a red liquid labeled ‘Gaza spilled blood.’"
“A large menu placard offered a buffet of misinformation. Antisemitic tropes? Take your pick,” it added.
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater DC said, “Just steps away from the symbols and heart of American democracy, a scene that would have been right at home in Nazi Germany played out in the United States. Seldom have we seen such a sickening display of full-throated antisemitism.”
According to reports, the display was the work of prominent local pro-Palestinian Arab activists, with two of them credited in social media posts.
(Arutz Sheva-Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)