On June 23, 2024, pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian protesters faced off in Los Angeles, blocking access to the Adas Torah Orthodox Jewish synagogue.
David Swanson/AFP/Getty Images
Los Angeles’ largely Jewish neighborhoods have become a flashpoint for anger over the Israel-Gaza conflict, with violent demonstrations between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protesters outside a synagogue over the weekend, prompting dozens of police presence, one arrest and condemnation of the mayor and President Joe Biden.
“I am appalled by the scenes outside Adas Torah Synagogue in Los Angeles,” Biden wrote on Twitter on Monday. “Intimidating Jewish people is dangerous, reprehensible, anti-Semitic and un-American. Americans have a right to peaceful protest, but blocking access to a place of worship and inflicting violence is never acceptable.”
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“I am appalled by the scenes outside Adas Torah Synagogue in Los Angeles. Intimidating Jewish people is dangerous, reprehensible, anti-Semitic and un-American.
Americans have the right to peaceful protest, but blocking access to places of worship and engaging in violent acts is…
— President Biden (@POTUS) June 24, 2024
Video footage of the clashes showed fistfights, protesters being pinned to the ground and people being sprayed with what appeared to be bear spray. The clashes culminated around 11 a.m. Sunday after about 150 demonstrators arrived at the Adas Torah synagogue in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood.
The gathering of demonstrators began with a group of pro-Palestinian protesters arriving to protest a real estate event where Israel’s My Home company was promoting “housing projects in all of Israel’s best Anglo residential neighborhoods.”
Word of the ad, which appeared in the June 21 issue of The Jewish Journal, spread online, and fliers announcing the event at Adas Torah synagogue soon appeared online.
Israeli real estate agent Avi Nefussi told Israel Hayom that protesters “targeted our event because they thought we were selling Palestinian land,” adding that his company had to quickly call for extra security. “Helicopters even showed up.”
The group of protesters reportedly arrived to disrupt the real estate event and at one point tried to block the entrance to the synagogue. The Hollywood Reporter reached out to the Southern California chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement for clarification on the purpose of the demonstration but had not received a response as of Monday.
The LAPD told the LA Times that roughly 60 officers arrived at the scene at Adas Torah, adding that 25 protesters attended a similar protest recently at a synagogue in North Hollywood — a mere fraction of the violent disturbances at Pico Robertson on Sunday.
“The Los Angeles Police Department responded to a protest in the Pico Robertson neighborhood yesterday afternoon. There were several physical confrontations between two groups of protesters, resulting in two reports of assault,” the LAPD said in an official statement obtained by The Hollywood Reporter on Monday. “An individual was also arrested for allegedly impaling a stake during the protest. The individual was charged at the West Los Angeles Police Station and has since been released.”
The Los Angeles Police Department added that it was further investigating the two reported incidents of assault and would be conducting additional patrols around significant places of worship to ensure the safety of “everyone.”
“We will always protect the First Amendment rights of those who wish to protest, but violence and crime will not be tolerated,” the LAPD statement read.
The Hollywood Reporter left a message with a Los Angeles Police Department public information officer on Monday seeking more details about the incident and arrest at Adas Torah synagogue but did not immediately receive a response.
California Governor Gavin Newsom wrote in a post, “The violent confrontation that took place outside Adas Torah Synagogue in Los Angeles is horrific. There is no excuse for targeting a house of worship. This type of anti-Semitic hatred has no place in California.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement on Sunday night in response to the attack, saying the city would not allow itself to become a haven for anti-Semitism.
“Today’s violence in the Pico Robertson neighborhood was abhorrent and blocking access to places of worship is unacceptable,” Bass said. “I have asked the LAPD to provide additional patrols in the Pico Robertson neighborhood and outside places of worship across the city. I will be meeting with Interim Chief Dominic Choi tomorrow to further discuss the safety of Los Angeles residents.”
“I want to be clear that Los Angeles will not be a hotbed of anti-Semitism and violence. Those responsible will be found and held accountable. I will be joining City Council Member Katie Yaroslavsky, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, Rabbi Noah Farkas, and other law enforcement and faith leaders in community meetings to discuss how we can move forward together.”
