Person with nail post arrested in clash outside LA synagogue – NBC Los Angeles

A person carrying a post studded with nails was arrested on Sunday as clashes broke out between Palestinian and Israeli supporter groups at a protest outside a synagogue in Los Angeles.

During the protest in front of the Adas Torah Synagogue in the Pico-Robertson district, several clashes broke out between the two groups, which resulted in two charges of assault, police said on Sunday.

Clashes began shortly before 11 a.m. and continued for hours after pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the synagogue encountered counter-protesters, some of whom carried Israeli flags. Scuffles broke out in the street, and videos from the scene showed scuffles and fights.

Officers in tactical gear moved into the West Los Angeles neighborhood.

The arrested person was summoned and released, police said.

“The Los Angeles Police Department will investigate the two reported batteries,” the LAPD said in a statement. “We will always protect the rights of those who wish to protest, which stem from the First Amendment to the Constitution. However, violence and crime will not be tolerated.”

Mayor Karen Bass had scheduled a meeting with Los Angeles Acting Police Chief Dominic Choi on Monday to discuss the violence.

“Today’s violence in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood was abhorrent and blocking access to a place of worship is unacceptable,” Bass said in a statement Sunday night. “I have requested that the Los Angeles Police Department provide additional patrols in the Pico-Robertson community as well as in front of places of worship throughout the city. I will be meeting with (interim) Chief (Dominic) Choi tomorrow to further discuss the safety of the residents of Los Angeles.”

“I want to make it clear that Los Angeles will not be a haven of anti-Semitism and violence. Those responsible for both will be found and held accountable. I will be joining City Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, Jewish Federation Los Angeles Board Chair Rabbi Noah Farkas, and other law enforcement and religious leaders in a community meeting to discuss next steps.”

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I am appalled by the scenes outside the Adas Torah Synagogue in Los Angeles. Intimidating Jewish community members is dangerous, unconscionable, anti-Semitic and un-American.

Americans have a right to peaceful protest. But blocking access to a place of worship – and using violence…

– President Biden (@POTUS) 24 June 2024

President Joe Biden described the violence as horrific.

Governor Gavin Newsom wrote in a social media post: “The violent clashes outside the Adas Torah Synagogue in Los Angeles are horrifying. There is no excuse for attacking a house of worship. There is no place for this kind of anti-Semitic hatred in California.”