Vandals tear down posters of Gaza hostages outside U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider's office on Capitol Hill
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Posters featuring photos of the more than 100 people still being held hostage by Hamas-led militants in Gaza were torn down outside U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider's office at the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, according to the congressman's office.
Schneider, a Democrat from Illinois, called the vandalism "a vile act of hate."
"This was a shameful act on any day, but especially on July 4, our country's Independence Day," Schneider said in a statement.
The video above is from a previous report.
The congressman shared photos of the vandalism on X, showing many of the posters of hostages on the floor, crumpled or shredded.
The posters featured the pictures of more than 100 people, including eight Americans, who have been held hostage by Hamas since the militant group's Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel.
U.S. Capitol Police confirmed they were investigating the vandalism, but declined to provide further information.
Hamas still holding more than 100 hostages after October attack on Israel
The ongoing war in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack into southern Israel, attacking multiple army bases and farming communities, and killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Militants also took another 250 people hostage. More than 100 of those hostages were released during a weeklong cease-fire in November.
Israel launched a major offensive in response to the Oct. 7 attack that has killed more than 38,000, according to health officials in Gaza, who don't say how many were civilians or militants. The war has caused vast destruction across the territory, displaced most of its population of 2.3 million — often multiple times — caused widespread hunger and raised fears of famine.
Pro-Palestinian protesters staged pre-dawn rally outside Schneider's office last week
The vandalism outside Schneider's office on Capitol Hill comes less than a week after pro-Palestinian protesters held an overnight rally outside Schneider's home in Highland Park starting around 2:45 a.m. on Saturday.
The noisy protest prompted several complaints from neighbors, who wondered why more wasn't done in response at such an hour.
City officials said police arrived on the scene within minutes of receiving a series of complaints, and saw around 40 protesters gathered on the sidewalk, holding up banners and shouting "pro-Palestinian and antisemitic chants" using loudspeakers and drums.
While police said there were antisemitic chants, CBS News Chicago could not confirm that was the case in the available video footage of the protest. In videos posted to social media, protestors can be heard saying "Free Free Palestine" and "Resistance is justified when there is a genocide."
Schneider's office said a red liquid that appeared to be some kind of animal blood was poured on the sidewalk.
Police said officers used de-escalation tactics and were able to disperse the crowd, with all protesters leaving by 3:15 a.m. Officers remained on scene for two additional hours after the protesters left for investigation and the safety of residents, officials said.
Protesters vowed "we will be back" while planting Palestinian flags in the grass.
No arrests were made and no citations were issued after the protest outside Schneider's home.
An Instagram post showing the demonstration included a caption reading, "Chicago organizers wake up Brad Schneider at 2:30 a.m. to demand he re-funds UNRWA and ends the U.S.-backed genocide." The post was found on the Instagram page "Direct Actions for Palestine," which tagged the Pro-Palestinian groups American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) Chicago and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) Chicago.
As seen in the Instagram post, protesters took issue with Schneider over Congress' defunding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and for Congress' approval of military aid to Israel.
"We must hold him accountable for the deaths of over 45,000 Palestinians in Gaza," Direct Actions for Palestine wrote on Instagram. "If Gaza doesn't get justice, then you don't get no sleep. This is just the beginning."
In March, Congress passed a massive appropriations bill that included a one-year ban on direct funding to the UNRWA—after allegations from Israel that some of its staff members participated in Hamas' Oct. 7 attack.
U.S. intelligence found the Israeli allegations about UNRWA and Oct. 7 to be credible, but did not conduct an independent analysis, relying instead on an evaluation of the intelligence provided by Israel. The U.S. has historically been the largest donor to UNRWA, which is the agency with the greatest infrastructure for distribution of aid within the 25-mile Gaza Strip.
The latest report from the U.N. found Israel has not provided supporting evidence to corroborate its claims that a significant number of UNRWA employees are members of Hamas.
Meantime, Israel's Cabinet was expected to discuss Hamas' latest response to a U.S.-backed proposal for a cease-fire in the war in Gaza, after a weekslong hiatus in diplomatic talks to end the fighting.