Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon was among demonstrators detained by New York police during a sit-in outside United Nations headquarters on Sept. 24, organizers and Reuters reported.
Video and eyewitness reporting show Susan Sarandon seated with other protesters as police moved in to clear a group that had blocked traffic on streets beside the UN, Reuters said. The arrests came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to address the U.N. General Assembly.
The rally was organized by Jewish Voice for Peace and drew roughly 200 people wearing matching white T-shirts with slogans such as “Fund people not bombs,” Reuters reported, and about 30 people were taken into custody after officers surrounded the core group and used zip ties to restrain some participants.
Other public figures arrested included comedian and actor Hannah Einbinder, according to The Guardian and Al Jazeera, which said the detentions totalled about 100 in some accounts. Photographs and video circulating on social platforms show officers escorting seated demonstrators onto police buses.
Organizers said the sit-in was timed to coincide with Netanyahu’s scheduled UN speech; Reuters reported many delegates walked out of the General Assembly Hall during his remarks. Demonstrators chanted slogans demanding an end to U.S. arms supplies to Israel, and some participants told reporters they were protesting on moral grounds.
New York police described the action as an unlawful obstruction that required clearing; Reuters detailed officers arriving on bicycles and removing seated protesters one by one. The Guardian’s video report captured Sarandon and Einbinder among those detained during the street-level sit-in.
The arrests add to a string of high-profile demonstrations in New York this month linked to the U.N. General Assembly and Israel-Palestine coverage. Coverage by Al Jazeera, The Guardian and Reuters provided the on-the-ground corroboration used in this article.
For context on related U.N. coverage, see how delegates reacted during Netanyahu’s address in our linked reporting and the city’s briefing on U.N. security preparations.
Internal reading: Netanyahu draws walkouts and UN security briefing.
Sources
- Reuters — reported Sarandon among at least 30 people arrested in a sit-in outside U.N. headquarters on Sept. 24 and described the protest and police response.
- The Guardian — video and reporting showing Susan Sarandon and Hannah Einbinder detained during the anti-Netanyahu demonstration outside the U.N.
- Al Jazeera — reported roughly 100 protesters were detained and provided video and eyewitness accounts of the sit-in timed to Netanyahu’s speech.
