The thousands of people screaming about peace and ceasefires outside of the White House yesterday certainly weren’t acting as if peace was important. In fact, as Fox News reported, many of them were becoming overtly violent. The speeches and chants gave way to attempts to break down the security fencing that had been erected to keep them out. They also began hurling things at the Metropolitan Police as well as the United States Park Police. The tone of the chants coming from the rioters shifted a bit also. Instead of only decrying Israel and demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, they were demanding that the United States stop striking back against the Houthi militants in Yemen. The potentially violent situation was bad enough that some White House staffers and journalists were temporarily “relocated” to keep them safe. The situation was completely out of control.
Anti-Israel protesters and rioters gathered outside the White House on Saturday night, with some demonstrators damaging security fencing and hurling objects at police.
The demonstrators were heard chanting “Ceasefire Now” and “Free, Free Palestine,” with many waving Palestinian flags. “Yemen, Yemen make us proud / Turn another ship around,” was also recited at the demonstration, hours after strikes were launched against the Houthis in Yemen.
The U.S. Secret Service told Fox News Digital that some fences were damaged outside the White House, and that staff members and journalists were “relocated” as a result. The White House also said on Saturday that President Biden is currently at Camp David.
“During the demonstration near the White House complex Jan. 13, a portion of the anti-scale fencing that was erected for the event sustained temporary damage,” the statement read. “The issues were promptly repaired on site by U.S. Secret Service support teams.”
Here’s some of the action and part of one of the speeches.
Curiously enough, throughout all of the chaos, not a single person was arrested in association with the event. I had been under the impression that when a protest at a federal building turned violent, property was damaged, and attacks on law enforcement took place, people were supposed to be held accountable. In fact, I’m pretty sure there are several hundred people cooling their heels in prison cells right now for precisely that sort of behavior. But I don’t hear anyone calling yesterday’s attacks an “insurrection.” Funny how that works.
As Bob Hoge pointed out at RedState, there were more than the normal Palestinian flags on display. People were hoisting ISIS flags as well. Yes, that would be the same ISIS terrorists that are so famous for their peaceful, humanitarian efforts around the world. Making things all the more bizarre, the person the protesters were attempting to influence (Joe Biden) wasn’t even there. He was already at Camp David. Also, Andy Ngo was on the scene as usual, filming the action and later posting it to Twitter.
Washington, DC— Far-left extremists & militant pro-Palestine rioters try to break down a protective fence at the White House in an uprising as revenge for the U.S. bombing Yemeni militants who attacked ships in support of Hamas. Video by @Julio_Rosas11: pic.twitter.com/TBGIuRkh1U
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) January 14, 2024
If it weren’t so sad, it would almost be amusing to hear all of those people chanting about stopping the “attacks” on Yemen. Assuming that any of those protesters could actually find Yemen on a map (a major assumption, I realize), do they have any idea who they are trying to support? Do they know who and what the Houthis are? They chanted, “Yemen, Yemen, make us proud. Turn another ship around.”
The United States is not attacking Yemen. We’re attacking the Houthi rebels. The Houthi drove the legitimate government of Yemen out of the capital and into exile. The United States supports that government, as does Saudi Arabia. The Houthis are not any sort of official government entity. They’re just terrorists. At least when these protesters are supporting Hamas you can kind of make the argument that Hamas is a government because the Palestinians elected them at one point. Nobody voted for the Houthis for anything.
I’m not trying to deny anyone the right to protest, no matter how nonsensical their “cause” appears to be. But as we’ve been assured repeatedly, when a protest turns into a riot, things need to be handled differently. Yesterday’s events clearly devolved into a riot and the rioters were supporting some of the most terrible, violent people on the planet. The word “surreal” doesn’t even begin to describe it.