Chants of 'Death to Zionists,' Hamas Flags and Support for 10/7 Attack Mark Some Nakba Day Rallies

Nakba Day rallies, during which protesters mourn Israel’s founding and the displacement of Palestinians, this year featured explicit support for terrorist organizations and disruptions at Jewish-owned businesses. 

More than 30 protests, attended by thousands, were held across the country between May 15 and May 17. Several protests in major cities featured open support for the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led terror attacks against Israel, as well as flags of Hamas and its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hezbollah, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). In Seattle, protesters chanted “death to Zionists” and held a banner featuring PFLP terrorist Leila Khaled and “Long live operation Al Aqsa Flood,” Hamas’s moniker for the October 7 terror attacks. 

In Philadelphia, protesters stopped in front of Jewish-owned falafel restaurant Goldie. Facing the restaurant, a speaker stated that “Zionist business owners have no place in our cities” and “Zionists are not welcome in our city.” The speaker also called for a boycott of the restaurant and others owned by the same individuals. 

Rallies were organized by many of the most prominent anti-Israel groups nationwide, including the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), Within Our Lifetime (WOL), and Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine (FSJP).

The Seattle protest on May 17, organized by groups including the Seattle chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and Nidal Seattle, featured chants of “death to the IDF” and support for the “Axis of Resistance” (usually a reference to the Iranian regime and its proxies, including terror groups Hezbollah and the Houthis). 

Both in Seattle and at a protest in the borough of Manhattan in New York City on May 15, participants carried a flag featuring former Hamas spokesperson Abu Obaida. At the New York City protest, one individual wore a Hamas headband. 

An attendee at the May 16 protest in the borough of Brooklyn in New York City wore a shirt praising the October 7 Hamas-led massacre, and another wore a sweatshirt featuring former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar brandishing a gun. 

Speakers and attendees at other protests also expressed support for terror and opposition to Zionism. A speaker at a rally in San Jose, California, on May 15 lauded the “Axis of Resistance.” Protesters in Los Angeles, California, on May 16 called for “Zionists out of Palestine” and chanted “hey, hey, ho, ho, Zionism has got to go.” One protester carried a sign calling to “free America from Israel’s control,” playing into historic antisemitic themes about Jewish political power. In Boston, Massachusetts, on May 15, a rally-goer held a sign reading “MA says no to Zionism.”

Many Nakba Day events in the U.S. have historically included expressions of support for terrorism against Israel, opposition to Israel’s existence, antisemitic themes, and calls for Zionists to be shunned from public life, and this year was no exception.

Monitoring and analysis by the ADL Center on Extremism since October 7, 2023, have found that pro-terror expressions, support for Hamas, and the direct targeting of the Jewish community are entirely in line with broader trends in the U.S. anti-Israel movement.

In 2025, ADL tracked 6,274 antisemitic incidents in the United States, 856 of which took place at anti-Israel protests.