Protesters against the Gaza war staged a sit-in at a congressional office building Tuesday ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu' s address to Congress, and Capitol Police made multiple arrests.
US Israel Netanyahu Congress U.S. Capitol Police detain demonstrators protesting against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress U.S. Capitol Police detain demonstrators protesting against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Demonstrators from Jewish Voice For Peace protest the war in Gaza at the Canon House Building on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The protest comes a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to speak before Congress. (Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images)
Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Jewish Voice For Peace protestors demonstrate in the Cannon House Office Building rotunda on Capitol Hill on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The demonstrators gathered to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United States amid Israel's ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Jewish Voice For Peace protestors demonstrate in the Cannon House Office Building rotunda on Capitol Hill on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The demonstrators gathered to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United States amid Israel's ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Demonstrators from Jewish Voice For Peace protest the war in Gaza at the Canon House Building on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The protest comes a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to speak before Congress. (Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images)
Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Demonstrators from Jewish Voice For Peace protest the war in Gaza at the Canon House Building on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The protest comes a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to speak before Congress. (Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images)
Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images
Jewish Voice For Peace Protestors Gather At U.S. Capitol Ahead Of Netanyahu Visit WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 23: Demonstrators from Jewish Voice For Peace protest the war in Gaza at the Canon House Building on July 23, 2024 in Washington, DC. The protest comes a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to speak before Congress. (Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images)
Photo by Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress U.S. Capitol Police detain demonstrators protesting against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
US Israel Netanyahu Congress Demonstrators protest against the military policies of Israel a day before a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu who will address a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, in the Cannon House Office Building at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Protesters against the Gaza war staged a sit-in at a congressional office building Tuesday ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress, with Capitol Police making multiple arrests.
Netanyahu arrived in Washington Monday for a several-day visit that includes meetings with President Joe Biden and a Wednesday speech before a joint session of Congress. Dozens of protesters rallied outside his hotel Monday evening, and on Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of demonstrators took over the rotunda of the Cannon Building, which houses offices of House of Representatives members.
Organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, protesters wearing identical red T-shirts that read “Not In Our Name” took over the Rotunda of the Cannon Building, chanting “Let Gaza Live!”
After about a half-hour of clapping and chanting, officers from the U.S. Capitol Police issued several warnings, then began arresting protesters — binding their hands with zip ties and leading them away one by one.
“I am the daughter of Holocaust survivors and I know what a Holocaust looks like,” said Jane Hirschmann, a native of Saugerties, New York, who drove down for the protest along with her two daughters — both of whom were arrested. “When we say ‘Never Again,’ we mean never for anybody.”
The demonstrators focused much of their ire on the Biden administration, demanding that the president immediately cease all arms shipments to Israel.
“We’re not focusing on Netanyahu. He’s just a symptom,” Hirschmann said. “But how can (Biden) be calling for a cease-fire when he’s sending them bombs and planes?”
It wasn’t immediately clear how many protesters had been arrested.
Mitchell Rivard, chief of staff for Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., said in a statement that his office called for Capitol Police intervention after the demonstrators “became disruptive, violently beating on the office doors, shouting loudly, and attempting to force entry into the office.”
Netanyahu’s American visit has touched off a wave of protest activity, with some demonstrations condemning Israel and others expressing support but pressuring Netanyahu to strike a cease-fire deal and bring home the hostages still being held by Hamas.
Families of some of the remaining hostages were planning a protest vigil Tuesday night on the National Mall. And multiple overlapping protests are planned for Wednesday, when Netanyahu is slated to address Congress. In anticipation, police have significantly boosted security around the Capitol building and closed multiple roads for the entire week.
Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet Thursday, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the White House announcement. Vice President Kamala Harris will also meet with Netanyahu separately that day.
Harris, as Senate president, would normally sit behind foreign leaders addressing Congress, but she’ll be away Wednesday, on an Indianapolis trip scheduled before Biden withdrew his reelection bid and she became the likely Democratic presidential candidate over the weekend.
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would meet with Netanyahu on Friday.
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Associated Press writers Stephen Groves and Ellen Knickmeyer contributed to this report.
