Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters storm Biden’s Delaware mansion to demand ceasefire — as president declares war and death ‘part of our American story’ during Veterans Day service
Hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators descended on President Biden’s mansion in Delaware to demonstrate against US support for Israel in the Middle East conflict.
Images from outside the sprawling Wilmington compound showed dozens of Palestinian flags flying next to signs accusing the White House of facilitating genocide in Gaza.
“Biden, Biden, you can’t hide! We accuse you of genocide!’ the crowd sang, but also, “In November we will remember.”
The protest erupted as Biden was giving a speech at nearby Arlington National Cemetery to celebrate Veterans Day, where he suffered another public gaffe as he struggled to find his place on stage.
Amid furious calls for a ceasefire amid protests springing up across the US, Biden declared in his speech at the Arlington National Ceremony that war and death are “part of our American story.”
As Biden spoke at Arlington National Cemetery for a Veterans Day service, hundreds of pro-Palestine supporters descended on his Delaware mansion, where they criticized U.S. support for Israel as the Middle East conflict escalates.
Lines of protesters were seen marching toward Biden’s home, where the demonstration paused as speakers called for a ceasefire
US President Joe Biden lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery during Veterans Day celebrations
After laying a ceremonial wreath, Biden appeared to need direction from a military officer as he took steps in the wrong direction
The protesters stormed the area outside Biden’s compound starting Saturday morning to demand a ceasefire in Gaza, where more than 11,000 have been killed in retaliatory attacks from Israel.
Among the speakers at Biden’s home was left-wing activist Linda Sarsour, who sparked a backlash in 2017 after urging Muslims to wage a “holy war” against the Trump administration and using the term “jihad.”
Lines of protesters were seen marching towards Biden’s home, which remained outside as speakers called for action to stop the escalation of the war between Israel and Hamas.
The demands come as the Biden administration this week negotiated four-hour daily breaks in the northern Gaza Strip, aimed at allowing people to evacuate and humanitarian aid to flow in.
Despite the small victory announced Thursday, intense protests continue to erupt across America.
Biden’s luxurious home in Delaware is one of several properties the president owns. The house is pictured in 2016
In New York City, hundreds of high school students and teachers walked out of class Thursday to protest the bombings in Gaza, as the Big Apple has seen several protests turn violent in recent weeks.
During Thursday’s demonstrations in New York, activists also stormed the New York Times building to criticize reporting on the war in Israel, as NYPD cars outside the building were covered in graffiti reading “Free Gaza” and ” IDF KKK’.
Protesters took over the lobby of the newspaper building, holding aloft Palestinian flags and a sign that read “Ceasefire Now.” They read the names of those killed in Gaza from a newspaper called “The New York Crimes.”
Tens of thousands of people also flocked to Washington DC last week in one of the largest protests against the Middle East crisis in the US since the Hamas attacks on October 7.
Several historic landmarks, including a memorial in Lafayette Square, were defaced with headscarves and graffiti reading “F*** Biden.”
Anti-Semitic graffiti reading “Death to Israel” and “Glory to our martyrs” was also sprayed on buildings in DC ahead of the march.
This week, demonstrators in New York City stormed the offices of the New York Times to protest coverage of the war in Israel
Outside the New York Times building, NYPD vehicles were spray-painted with ‘Free Gaza’ and ‘IDF KKK’
The week before, tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian supporters had also come to Washington DC
Protesters in Washington DC gathered to demand a ceasefire and an end to US military aid to Israel
As the latest protest continues at Biden’s Delaware home, reports indicate the president will return to the property instead of the White House after attending a Veterans Day service at Arlington National Cemetery.
The 80-year-old appeared to endure an embarrassing moment of confusion in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, attempting to take stage directions from an Arlington honor guard to find his place next to Vice President Kamala Harris.
He took several steps in the wrong direction before returning to a ceremonial wreath.
Biden then delivered a speech about the “ultimate sacrifice” of U.S. troops, acknowledging escalating global tensions and praising how “Americans around the world stand guard, often at great personal risk.”
“War and conflict, death and loss, are not remnants of our American history; they are part of our American story.”
Biden continued in his speech to members of the armed forces and Gold Star families, “Here in Arlington lie heroes who gave what President Lincoln called ‘the last full measure of dedication.’
‘They have died over the past twenty years not only at Gettysburg or in Flanders Field on the beaches of Normandy, but also in the mountains of Afghanistan, the deserts of Iraq.
‘Here are hundreds of graves from recent conflicts. Hundreds of patriots gave everything and each of them left behind a family that lives with their pain and their absence every day.”
He added that veterans are the “steel backbone of this nation,” and recounted famous battles where soldiers were “linked in a chain of honor that goes back to our founding fathers.”
“Everyone is bound by a sacred oath to support and defend. Not a place, not a person, not a president, but an idea, to defend an idea unlike any other in human history,” he said.
“That idea is the United States of America.”
Biden, 80, paid his respects to the fallen soldiers at the service, where he said that “war and conflict, death and loss, are not remnants of our American history – they are part of the American story.”
The president acknowledged escalating global tensions in his speech, adding: “Americans stand guard around the world, often at great personal risk.”
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris listen to the national anthem during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
Saturday’s service was the 70th annual National Veterans Day Observance at Arlington National Cemetery
Biden revealed a card from his jacket that he said he has carried since he was vice president, showing an updated number of U.S. soldiers killed in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Today that number is 7,036,” he said. ‘7,036 fallen angels who lost their lives in these conflicts.
“This Memorial Day we honor their legacy and their sacrifice, duty and honor to their country.”
Saturday’s service was the 70th annual National Veterans Day Observance in Arlington, and was also attended by Harris, First Lady Jill Biden and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff.