Strong police presence at pro-Palestinian rally in downtown Miami; arrests made
MIAMI - There were verbal clashes over the Israel-Hamas War near the Torch of Friendship in downtown Miami on Friday afternoon, where a pro-Palestinian rally was being held.
CBS4 cameras showed a strong police presence at the monument of friendship, where there were reports of a handful of arrests.
Those at the event were waving flags and chanting for peace and in support of Palestinians in Gaza.
CBS4 cameras caught a driver verbally confronting a demonstrator and then that same driver would later confront the same demonstrator by yelling and cursing over the Hamas attack on Israel.
The two faced off for several minutes, with the man saying that he lost a member of his family in the attack last weekend.
That same man confronted other members of the rally. At that point, Miami police jumped in.
It was then, that more police showed up. They were on foot, bicycles, motorcycles and cruisers.
None of it took away from the message a man named Mohammad came to share about the Israel-Hamas War.
"Cease fire immediately. Cease fire. Cease fire. That's it. Save civilian lives. Civilians. All civilians. Gazans... everybody."
We saw police pull one man out of the rally and detain him. We watched it happen to at least one other person.
Meanwhile, a group of counterprotesters formed on the west side of Biscayne Boulevard.
Police kept them and those across the street behind yellow tape and walls of officers to keep everyone safe.