Intense Security at Peaceful Parade for Israel in Manhattan

Thousands of pro-Israel demonstrators marched along Fifth Avenue on Sunday during a heavily policed Israel Day parade that took on a more somber tone this year as the war in Gaza enters its eighth month.

The normally jubilant event, which has been held annually since 1964, had fewer spectators in Midtown than usual because of intense security. The parade — which was expected to draw 40,000 participants, all of whom needed credentials to march — has been previously called “The Salute to Israel Parade” or “Celebrate Israel.” This year, it was renamed “Israel Day on 5th” and focused on remembering the hostages seized by Hamas on Oct. 7.

The event was mostly peaceful and drew very few counterprotesters. Police barricades, chain-link fences and checkpoints guarded by police officers limited access to the route.

New York has had roughly 3,000 demonstrations related to the Israel-Hamas war since October, according to Mayor Eric Adams, most of them pro-Palestinian, and hundreds of protesters have been arrested. No Palestinian flags were in evidence along the parade route on Sunday.

Still, moments of tension erupted between participants and politicians. At the start of the parade, the arrival of elected officials, including Gov. Kathy Hochul; Letitia James, the attorney general of New York; and Senator Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat and the Senate majority leader, drew jeers from the crowd.

As Senator Schumer began to speak at Fifth Avenue and 55th Street, those gathered there demanded the return of Israeli hostages. At least one person shouted, “You betrayed us,” a reference to Mr. Schumer’s sharp criticism of the Israeli government in a Senate speech in March.