International Protests Over the 2021 Israel–Palestine Crisis

The protests followed tensions in Jerusalem during Ramadan, including clashes at Damascus Gate, disputes concerning properties in Sheikh Jarrah, and confrontations at the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount compound. Palestinian National and Islamic Factions called for a May 11 “Day of Rage” across cities, villages, and refugee camps in the West Bank — known by its original, indigenous Jewish name of Judea and Samaria — in opposition to Israeli actions in Jerusalem.[2]

Operation Guardian of the Walls ran from May 10 through May 21, 2021. Rocket fire from Gaza and Israeli military operations generated a rapid political and public response abroad, with demonstrations beginning during the fighting and continuing after the ceasefire.[3][1]

The United States experienced hundreds of demonstrations. The ADL counted more than 400 anti-Israel rallies and protests from May 11 through May 21, while INSS separately described dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrations during the operation and a “considerable number” of pro-Israel events organized by the American Jewish community.[5][1]

Selected reports documented gatherings in London, Berlin, Brussels, Paris, Athens, Madrid, Rome, Vienna, Sydney, Melbourne, Tokyo, Santiago, and cities across the United States.[3][4] Other reports listed demonstrations in Baghdad, Amman, Islamabad, Jakarta, Romania, and Switzerland, illustrating the movement's international scope without establishing a comprehensive worldwide count.[8]

London hosted some of the period's largest reported demonstrations. A U.S. State Department report recorded a 100,000-person march on May 15 that ended outside the Israeli Embassy, while contemporaneous coverage described several thousand people assembling at Marble Arch before marching toward the embassy.[6][9] Demonstrators carried signs reading “Stop Bombing Gaza” and chanted “Free Palestine.” Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn participated, and organizers included the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Friends of Al-Aqsa, and the Palestinian Forum in Britain.[9][4]

On May 16, a convoy of cars displaying Palestinian flags drove through north London suburbs with large Jewish populations while antisemitic threats and abuse were broadcast over loudspeakers. JPR characterized the conduct as deliberate, provocative, and intimidating.[10] Four men were arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated public-order offenses and later released on bail pending further inquiries. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labour leader Keir Starmer condemned the episode.[6]

On May 22, organizers claimed that 180,000 people attended another London demonstration, while the Times of Israel described the crowd as numbering in the tens of thousands. Demonstrations were also reported in Manchester, Bristol, Peterborough, and Nottingham.[11] Reports from London showed an Israeli flag being dragged behind a car and another being burned; the Campaign Against Antisemitism also cited placards comparing Israel with Nazi Germany.[11]

The Community Security Trust recorded 460 antisemitic incidents from May 8 to June 7, its highest monthly total since records began in 1984.[12] For all of 2021, CST recorded 2,255 incidents, up 34 percent from 2020; May and June accounted for 39 percent of the annual total, and 95 of 182 school-related incidents occurred in May.[6]

Survey evidence documented the communal impact. Nearly eight in ten respondents to one survey said demonstrations, processions, and convoys had made them feel intimidated as Jews.[13] In a separate JPR survey, 73 percent felt held responsible by non-Jews for the Israeli government's actions, while 56 percent said public and media criticism of Israel made them feel Jews were unwelcome in the United Kingdom.[10]

Germany saw antisemitic violence and vandalism associated with the protest period. On May 10, unknown individuals burned a memorial plaque at the former Düsseldorf synagogue. On May 11, demonstrators burned Israeli flags outside synagogues in Bonn and Münster, and stones were thrown at the Bonn synagogue. The next day, approximately 180 people attended an anti-Israel demonstration in Gelsenkirchen where participants chanted insults describing Jews as subhuman; some displayed a gesture associated with the Turkish right-wing extremist Grey Wolves.[7]

On May 15, 3,500 people participated in a demonstration in Berlin's Neukölln district that the State Department report said “turned antisemitic.” Chants and signs equated Israel with Nazi Germany. After police attempted to end the event over violations of COVID-19 requirements, participants threw bottles, stones, and burning objects at police and journalists. Ninety-three officers were injured and 59 people were arrested.[7]

A demonstrator also threw a firecracker at Israeli journalist Antonia Yamin after hearing her report in Hebrew. The AJC reported additional calls for “armed resistance,” boycotts of Israel, and bombs in Tel Aviv, as well as signs denying Israel's right to exist.[9][3] Police increased protection around synagogues and deployed interpreters to monitor demonstrations for hate speech.[3]

The association RIAS documented 261 Israel-related antisemitic incidents across Germany between May 9 and May 24, including 10 attacks, 22 cases of targeted property damage, and 18 threats.[14] Then-Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the demonstrations and attacks on Jewish institutions as “antisemitic abuses of the right to free assembly,” saying those involved were “not protesting a state or government but expressing hate against a religion and those that belong to it.”[7]

France banned a planned May 15 march in Paris. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin cited the risk of antisemitic violence and the precedent of a violent 2014 demonstration. An Israeli government report stated that 2,500 to 3,500 protesters defied the ban and that approximately 4,200 police officers were deployed.[3][15] Police blocked streets and used tear gas and water cannons as some demonstrators threw stones or attempted to construct roadblocks.[9]

The AJC reported more than 50 arrests and hundreds of fines but did not clarify whether those totals applied only to Paris or to France more broadly.[3] On May 22, demonstrations took place in Paris, Lyon, Lille, Strasbourg, Toulouse, and Montpellier. Estimates included up to 4,000 participants in Paris, 650 to 1,000 in Lille, and 1,100 in Lyon.[11]

Approximately 2,500 people rallied in Vienna on May 13 against Israel's actions in Gaza. The World Jewish Congress reported that demonstrators chanted in Arabic, “Jews, remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning,” which it contextualized as invoking the massacre and expulsion of Jews from Khaybar.[16]

At another Vienna rally, demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and chanted “Allahu Akbar” and “Child Murderer Israel.” Police investigated antisemitic slogans, and Austrian ministers warned against abusing freedom of assembly to make antisemitic statements. Eleven people were questioned and released without charges. The BDS movement and pro-Palestinian groups also held demonstrations concerning house evacuations in East Jerusalem.[17]

In Malmö, Sweden, police arrested a man on May 12 on suspicion of hate speech after he sang the Khaybar chant at a pro-Palestinian demonstration. On May 17, Palestinians and Jews held a joint demonstration against the war and antisemitism in solidarity with a 12-year-old Jewish girl whose reported antisemitic harassment at school had intensified during the conflict. Jewish and Muslim organizations issued a joint statement on May 20 condemning antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred connected to external conflicts.[18]

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations took place across the United States, including in Philadelphia, New Orleans, Dallas, Washington, Chicago, Boston, Dearborn, New York, and Los Angeles.[8][9] In Los Angeles, thousands marched approximately two miles from a federal building to the Israeli consulate, closing a major thoroughfare.[15] In Brooklyn's Bay Ridge neighborhood, several hundred demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and signs and chanted “Free, free Palestine” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”[9]

On May 12, thousands attended a pro-Israel rally in Times Square organized by the Israeli-American Council. Similar events took place in Boston, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Denver, Houston, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC.[19] The organization also promoted demonstrations in locations including Arizona, Austin, Colorado, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Florida.[20]

Opposing groups carrying Israeli and Palestinian flags later gathered in Times Square, where police separated them. On Manhattan's 47th Street, demonstrators in cars displayed Palestinian flags and argued with employees and passersby before a firecracker exploded on the sidewalk.[21] Separate clashes on May 21 resulted in dozens of arrests.[22] A Senate resolution introduced by Senator Josh Hawley on May 25 alleged violence and threats in Manhattan's Diamond District; it was referred to committee and was not an enacted finding.[23]

In Los Angeles, the ADL documented an attack on Jewish diners by individuals who arrived in cars displaying Palestinian flags, asked whether the customers were Jewish, and subsequently used anti-Jewish slurs during the assault.[5]

In Montreal, media reports cited by the State Department described men carrying Palestinian flags attacking Jewish demonstrators with stones and physical assaults; police used tear gas to disperse the crowds.[24] In Toronto, the World Jewish Congress reported that pro-Palestinian demonstrators swarmed and assaulted a small number of pro-Israel protesters, including an elderly man.[16] B'nai B'rith Canada reported receiving more antisemitic incident reports in May 2021 than in 2018, 2019, and 2020 combined.[24]

In Lebanon, Palestinian protesters traveled from the Nahr al-Bared camp toward the Israeli border on May 15. Peaceful solidarity marches were also reported for a second consecutive day in Jordan's Karameh area.[9] At Adaisseh on May 18, demonstrators threw rocks, climbed the frontier wall, and planted Lebanese and Hezbollah flags. Israeli forces responded with tear gas; five people were reported injured, while hundreds marched from Beirut's Mar Elias refugee camp toward the city center.[25]

Dozens rallied in Karachi on May 11 to condemn Israeli actions at the al-Aqsa Mosque compound.[26] On May 18, several hundred protesters gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, where more than 1,000 police were deployed. Related union-organized protests took place in Surabaya, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Makassar, and Riau.[25]

Thousands demonstrated in Sydney and Melbourne. Sydney protesters marched from near city hall, while demonstrators in Melbourne marched toward the parliament building carrying “Free Palestine” banners.[4] Other reports documented events in Baghdad, Amman, Islamabad, Tokyo, Santiago, Romania, and Switzerland.[8][4]

Monitoring organizations documented antisemitic incidents within or around some demonstrations while cautioning against treating all protesters or events alike. Variants of the Khaybar chant were reported in Brussels, Berlin, and Vienna.[3][16] In Malmö, police arrested a man suspected of hate speech for singing the chant.[18]

A study of UK online debate stated that large anti-Israel demonstrations across Europe and the United States were followed by reports of physical and verbal attacks on Jews, Jewish-owned businesses, and synagogues.[27] In the United Kingdom, CST's 2,255 incidents in 2021 represented its highest annual total since tracking began in 1984.[6] In Germany, RIAS documented 261 Israel-related antisemitic incidents from May 9 through May 24.[14]

The impact extended beyond recorded offenses. Nearly eight in ten respondents to a UK survey felt intimidated as Jews by demonstrations, processions, and convoys, while separate JPR findings documented widespread feelings of blame and exclusion.[13][10] B'nai B'rith Canada's comparison between May 2021 and the preceding three years indicated a similarly sharp communal impact in Canada.[24]

The protest landscape also included pro-Israel demonstrations. The Israeli-American Council organized events in numerous U.S. locations, with thousands attending its May 12 Times Square rally.[19][20] INSS described a “considerable number” of demonstrations organized by the American Jewish community during the operation.[1]

In Sweden, the May 17 demonstration in Malmö brought Palestinians and Jews together against the war and antisemitism. Swedish Jewish and Muslim organizations subsequently issued a joint statement condemning both antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred connected to foreign conflicts.[18]

Political leaders condemned antisemitic conduct associated with the protest period. Angela Merkel denounced attacks on Jewish institutions and antisemitic abuse of freedom of assembly.[7] Austrian ministers warned against antisemitic statements at demonstrations, while Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer condemned the north London convoy.[17][6]

France's interior minister cited the risk of “death to Jews” chants when defending the Paris protest ban, and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs condemned the Toronto assault as political violence.[3][16] In the United States, Senator Josh Hawley introduced Senate Resolution 232 condemning alleged antisemitic violence at demonstrations; the measure was referred to the Judiciary Committee and was not enacted.[23]

The May 2021 protest wave had measurable consequences for Jewish communities. CST recorded its highest annual UK incident total since 1984, while B'nai B'rith Canada reported that May alone produced more reports than the previous three years combined.[6][24] Germany's RIAS documented more than 16 Israel-related antisemitic incidents per day between May 9 and May 24.[14]

The sources also stress that protest activity and antisemitism should not be conflated. The ADL stated that most of the more than 400 U.S. rallies it counted were not characterized by antisemitism, and INSS likewise distinguished the demonstrations from antisemitic incidents.[5][1] Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia Interior Ministry did not separately classify antisemitic and anti-Israel incidents, illustrating the difficulty of drawing consistent boundaries.[7]

The ceasefire on May 21 did not immediately end protest activity. Large demonstrations occurred in London, France, and other English cities on May 22.[11] Survey findings that many British Jews felt blamed for Israeli policy or unwelcome in their country further demonstrated that the repercussions extended beyond the demonstrations themselves.[10]

Accounts of the protest wave use different categories and counting methods. The ADL counted more than 400 “anti-Israel” rallies in the United States over a defined 11-day period, while INSS described “dozens” of “pro-Palestinian” demonstrations during the military operation. The figures are not interchangeable because the sources used different labels, periods, and apparent inclusion criteria.[5][1]

Advocacy groups, government reports, and news organizations also focused on different aspects of the events. Reports of antisemitic chants or violence generally concerned specific demonstrations or participants and do not establish that every protest was antisemitic.[3][16] The failure of one German ministry to separate antisemitic from anti-Israel incidents further shows why source characterizations and attributed crowd estimates must be preserved rather than presented as a single comprehensive global tally.[7]