Actor Rowan Blanchard Arrested with 25 Palestinian and Jewish New Yorkers Blockading Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Motorcade Route to the United Nations, Disrupting His Address to the General Assembly in Wake of Assault on Lebanon and Genocide in Gaza

Actor and activist Rowan Blanchard was arrested with 25 Palestinian and Jewish New Yorkers outside of the United Nations on Thursday, disrupting the motorcade route of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he prepared to address the General Assembly.

“As Jewish New Yorkers we vehemently condemn Prime Minister Netanyahu’s assault on Lebanon and genocide of Palestinians in Gaza. We will continue to raise our voices in dissent until the United States government stops arming Israel and Palestinians are able to live with the full freedom and dignity they deserve,” said Jay Saper of Jewish Voice for Peace.

Netanyahu’s visit to New York comes a week after pagers and walkie talkies were detonated across Lebanon, killing at least 70 and maiming thousands of people. Only a few days after the attacks, Israel launched hundreds of airstrikes, killing over 500 people in a single day — one of the highest daily death tolls of any war in recent history — and injuring another 1,600.

“Netanyahu is not welcome in New York,” said actor and activist Rowan Blanchard.

Netanyahu’s visit also marks nearly a year of a relentless bombing of Gaza that has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, which has led the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant for the prime minister’s crimes against humanity.

“Our world leaders have done nothing to stop Netanyahu and his genocidal administration from murdering over 15,000 children and several times more adults. As he plans to escalate the slaughter, we must be the ones to stop him,” said Munir Marwan of

Palestinian Youth Movement.

The protesters blockaded the Israeli motorcade route outside of the Midtown Manhattan headquarters of the United Nations, bringing traffic to a halt near the East River. They wore red shirts that read “Stop Arming Israel” and unfurled banners that read

“Stop the Genocide” and “No War Criminals Welcome in NYC.” They chanted “Stop Bombing Gaza.”

The arrests kick off what is expected to be a daylong protest of Netanyahu, with hundreds anticipated outside the United Nations later in the afternoon. Netanyahu’s last visit to the United States, when he addressed a joint session of Congress on July 24, was also with massive protests in the streets and one of the largest sit-ins in the history of Congress that led to the arrest of over 200 people.