Protests divide Times Square, with pro-Palestinians on one side and pro-Israelis on the other.

New York, Oct 13 (EFE).- Peaceful protests have divided the iconic Times Square this Friday, on one side of the New York square more than a hundred pro-Palestinians, on the other a score of pro-Israelis and in between a large police deployment.

On the Palestinian side, freedom was shouted for the Palestinian people and the United States Government was blamed for having taken the Israeli side after the Hamas attack in Israel last weekend, which left 1,400 dead, according to local media.

Likewise, participants showed photos of the dead in the Gaza Strip. According to Palestinian authorities, at least 1,800 people have died in this area as a result of Israeli bombings this week.

A twenty-something woman born in the United States and with family in Palestine told EFE that she came to the protest with a group of friends because her Palestinian relatives have asked her to show her support, since it means "a lot to them."

The young woman, who preferred not to give her name, points out that since the Hamas attack last weekend, she has noticed that people look at her differently when they see that she is wearing a veil and a Palestinian flag.

For her part, Lindda Nobenski, a 77-year-old American, told EFE that she decided to go to Times Square to protest against the "massacre" that the territory is experiencing.

"I think killing innocent people is abhorrent, it's horrible. But everyone knows that if you have a pressure cooker and you don't release the pressure, it's going to explode and splash everyone," said the woman after being asked about the Hamas attacks.

On the Israeli side, Jonathan Trojan Greenberry, an Israeli living in New York, told EFE with teary eyes that his sister's boyfriend was one of the survivors of the festival that Hamas attacked last week.

Trojan Greenberry described this war as a tragedy, but said his stomach turned when he saw some pro-Palestinians in the United States celebrating the attack.

Dozens of police officers and several helicopters and drones today ensured security in Times Square, surveillance that was reinforced following the call of the former leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal, who led the Islamist group between 2004 and 2017, to the Islamic community around the world to demonstrate this Friday in support of Palestine.

Yesterday, the department canceled the vacation and ordered all its agents to report in their uniforms while activating an operations center in Manhattan, in anticipation of the protest.

Additionally, the Police have increased security at their 77 police stations across the city, assigning additional personnel to guard the entrances and parking areas of the barracks.

However, the department indicated in a statement yesterday that there is no "credible threat." EFE

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