Capitol Police begin arresting Gaza 'cease-fire' protesters holding sit-in at Cannon Rotunda
Capitol Police arrest Mennonites who staged a sit-in at the Cannon Rotunda in support of a cease-fire in Gaza after singing protesters refused to leave.
Capitol Police have started arresting pro-Palestinian protesters who participated in a sit-in demonstration in the Cannon Rotunda calling for a cease-fire in Gaza on Tuesday.
"A group of people legally entered the Cannon House Office Building after they went through screening. Demonstrations are not allowed inside Congressional Buildings, so when they started to protest and refused to stop, we began arresting them. Arrests are ongoing," a U.S. Capitol Police spokesperson said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
Video showed the group of approximately 150-200 Mennonites sitting on the ground and singing hymns, with some holding placards reading, "Let Gaza Live," and, "Free All Hostages."
They also chanted, "Cease-fire now," before officers approached and selected individuals to take into custody.
Protesters seemed to comply by standing and letting officers place zip-ties on their wrists before being escorted out of the building.
The protest was intended as an act of civil disobedience, FOX 5 DC reported.
Police did not immediately disclose the number of arrests, but the group Mennonite Action said 150 were arrested.
"A group of about 150 Mennonites were arrested today in the Cannon building in an act of peaceful civil disobedience, singing hymns and calling for a ceasefire in Gaza," Mennonite Action wrote on X, sharing more footage of the demonstration. "As the Capitol Police made arrests, we never stopped singing. #Mennonites4Ceasefire."
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The group added in another X post, "Permanent ceasefire now. Release all hostages. End the occupation of Palestine. Hundreds of Mennonites are taking peaceful action in DC today to lift our voices for these demands."
"As a group of about 150 Mennonites are getting arrested in an act of peaceful civil disobedience in the Cannon building, a larger group of 200 Mennonites are holding a hymn sing and worship service outside to call for a permanent ceasefire," Mennonite Action wrote.
This comes as the left-wing, anti-war nonprofit organization CodePink has been calling on protesters to mobilize from Jan. 16-19 during "congressional days of action for Palestine."
On its website, CodePink calls for demonstrators to meet at the Senate Hart Building each day, adding, "We have been in the halls of Congress since October 7th. Since then, 64 members of Congress have called for a ceasefire and many interns have exposed their members who were not listening to the calls of the people."
