Pro-Israeli, pro-Palestinian protesters kick off dueling demonstrations in Miami Beach
MIAMI BEACH — As the war in the Middle East intensifies, tensions here in South Florida have increased.
Separate demonstrations kicked off at Lummus Park in Miami Beach on Saturday afternoon, where pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian protesters have gathered to voice their opinions and concerns as the world enters the sixth week since the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel.
On the Israeli side of Ocean Drive, demonstrators carried with them Israel's flag, photos of those kidnapped by Hamas and signs; and just across the street, pro-Palestinian demonstrators stood with signs and flags of Palestine flew.
A large presence of Miami Beach Police officers arrived promptly in response to the conflicting demonstrations to make sure that neither side got violent and disrupted the peace.
Pro-Israeli
On the pro-Israeli side, this was an emergency call.
Normally, these don't happen on Shabbat because it's the day of rest for the Jewish people; but, they said they thought it was important enough to get as many people as possible to come out here.
Some even asked rabbis for permission to break Shabbat.
"They always try to make it on Saturday, which is the holy day for Jewish people," said Amir Tal.
Tal grew up in Israel but now lives close enough to South Beach that he said he didn't have to drive to come out and support Israel.
"That mask that they put on, that's anti-Zionism and they care about this cause it's fake," he said. "Because Palestinians are dying in Syria, Palestinians are dying in Lebanon, in Jordan — everywhere — and they don't care about that. They only care about when it's Israel."
Throughout the afternoon, there were heated exchanges. Eventually, both crowds took opposite sides of Ocean Drive.
"They're talking about Israel committing genocide — they're the ones who committed genocide," said Haskel Meyer. "They slaughtered babies, they raped women, took Holocaust survivors."
Rynor witnessed one moment when three pro-Palestinian women asked for proof that Israeli kids were murdered.
State Rep. Fabian Basabe, who represents Miami Beach, was there to stand with the pro-Israel side. He said he'd be happy to pay for tickets to send them to Gaza.
"If they're not here to assimilate to a community that respects and wants everyone to live together," he said. "They're welcome to leave. By the way — I can organize their flights out."
There were a lot of hateful comments shared between the two sides on Saturday, but there was one moment when two men on either side decided to give each other time to speak without interruption.
"Yelling at each other doesn't make any progress," the pro-Palestinian supporter said.
For as long as there is a war, they said they are going to continue showing up, they're going to keep posting the photos of the kidnapped hostages so the world doesn't forget what happened on October 7.
Pro-Palestinian
On the pro-Palestinian side, demonstrators chanted, "Palestine will be free. Palestine will be free."
It began as a small rally at 10th and Ocean on South Beach, but it grew quickly to hundreds as more and more people showed up.
It also attracted counter-protestors with a pro-Israel rally right across the street. Police quickly moved in, using bikes and ATVs to separate the two sides.
Then Pro-Palestinian demonstrators took over Ocean Drive, marching with a message.
"This is enough, enough of this genocide, this killing, enough," said Nawal Aissa.
That was the rallying cry of many.
"We just want babies to stop dying, I don't know why it's so offensive to people to ask that babies stop dying," asked Palestinian American Mohammad Mustafa.
The rally was made up of several groups, including The Jewish Voice for Peace.
"We're a group of Jews and allies who believe in a liberated Palestine, who believe in peace and are calling for a cease-fire right now," said Nikki Morse.
It ended nearly a mile away with a vow to continue the fight.
"They want us to stay silent, we are not staying silent. We'll be back next week, we'll be back the week after. We'll be back two weeks from now. We will be here," an organizer said to a cheering crowd.
Organizers say right now they're starting to put together an education campaign, but they say the rallies and protests won't stop here in South Florida or around the state.
Police Response
City of Miami Beach Police Officer Christopher Bess told CBS News Miami that there was extensive planning from law enforcement to make sure both sides didn't get out of control.
"We are working with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to ensure that everyone is peacefully assembling and also we don't neglect the public safety element of all of this," he told Rynor.
"The message is very clear: We are here to monitor the sequence of events, make sure that everyone's voices are heard and that their constitutional rights to peacefully assemble aren't infringed upon. However, we just can't stress enough how important that it is to be lawful, and also the public safety element as well."
Bess said that law enforcement was using cameras and all available resources to ensure that Miami Beach residents and visitors, along with the demonstrators, were safe during the event.