Pro-Palestinian protesters flooded the streets outside the venue where President Joe Biden was slated to address attendees at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner.
Demonstrators gathered outside the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington D.C. on Saturday night to protest the ongoing war in the Middle East as members of the press corps, celebrities and politicians gathered inside for the century-old event celebrating freedom of the press. During the protest, a large Palestinian flag was draped down the side of the hotel.
The protesters gathered outside the hotel on Saturday to rally against Israel continuing its war in Gaza.
Newsweek reached out via email on Saturday to representatives for the White House and Hilton for comment.
Kent Nishimura/Getty
The conflict began after the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that left 1,200 people dead and saw over 200 more taken hostage. In the nearly seven months of war, the Palestinian death toll has surpassed 34,000, with more than 76,000 wounded, according to the Associated Press, per the Gaza Health Ministry. While the Hamas-run ministry does not differentiate between combatants and civilians in their count, it says at least two-thirds have been children and women.
The harrowing number of Palestinian deaths has sparked widespread criticism that has led to protests across the globe. The death toll and distressing images of children dead in the rubble of bombed buildings resulted in mounting calls for a ceasefire and increased pressure on Biden to take a tougher line on Israel, a longtime U.S. ally.
The pro-Palestinian rally outside the WHCA dinner comes as protests have broken out at college campuses across the country, resulting in mass arrests.
On Saturday, videos shared on social media showed protesters in D.C. shouting at Biden’s motorcade and event attendees as they headed inside the hotel. Other protesters sat or lay in the street in an effort to block guests.
A viral video shared on X, formerly Twitter, shows protesters cheering when a massive Palestinian flag unfurled from one of the hotel’s top floors.
X user Adam Eidinger shared the clip and wrote: “A Palestinian flag has been deployed from the top floor of the Washington Hilton hotel where the White House correspondents dinner is taking place. #WHCD #Gaza”
Another video shared by X user #StopCopCity shows dozens of protesters lining D.C. streets.
“‘SHAME ON YOU! SHAME ON YOU!’ Wild scene outside of White House Correspondents Dinner #WHCD as #FreePalestine protesters hold U.S. corporate media complicit in genocide,” #StopCopCity wrote in the post.
Protesters sent up a memorial outside of the venue to honor the journalists killed in Gaza.
Kent Nishimura/Getty
Earlier this month, more than two dozen journalists in Gaza wrote a letter published by Medium that urged members of the press corps to boycott the historic event.
“As Palestinian journalists, we urgently appeal to you, our colleagues globally, with a demand for immediate and unwavering action against the Biden administration’s ongoing complicity in the systematic slaughter and persecution of journalists in Gaza,” the letter states. “We insist you publicly boycott the upcoming White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 27 as an act of solidarity with us — your fellow journalists — as well as with the millions of Palestinians currently being starved in Gaza due to the Biden administration’s continued political, financial, and military backing of Israel and cut-off of funding for live-saving humanitarian aid.”
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.