Protesters shut New York's Grand Central, seeking Gaza ceasefire

[October 28, 2023]  (Reuters) -Hundreds of protesters demanding a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas forced the closure on Friday of Grand Central Terminal, one of New York City's major transit hubs, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said. 

Palestinians search for casualties at the site of Israeli strikes on houses, in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, October 25, 2023. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

"Grand Central Terminal is closed until further notice due to a protest," the MTA said on its website, urging commuters to use alternate stations and plan for extra travel time.

"Mourn the dead, and fight like hell for the living," read one banner raised inside the building.

Images on social media showed protesters pouring out of the train station and onto 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, and a large crowd being detained by law enforcement.

The group Jewish Voice for Peace, which organized the demonstration, posted a video on Instagram showing police in the station escorting a long line of protesters, who were wearing shirts reading "Cease Fire Now" and "Not In Our Name" with their arms secured behind their backs.

"HUNDREDS OF JEWS AND ALLIES ARE GETTING ARRESTED IN WHAT IS LIKELY THE BIGGEST MASS CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE NYC HAS SEEN IN TWO DECADES," the group wrote in the post.

Israel's military widened its air and ground attacks on the Palestinian enclave of Gaza on Friday. Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that rules Gaza, said its militants were ready to confront Israeli attacks with "full force."

(Reporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and William Mallard)

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