Pro-Palestinian demonstrators march on Hwy 101 approach to Bay Bridge in S.F.
SAN FRANCISCO -- A group of protestors demanding an end to the Israel-Hamas war shut down traffic on the Central Freeway in downtown San Francisco for about 90 minutes Saturday afternoon, the California Highway Patrol said.
A large demonstration on city streets moved onto the freeway about 4 p.m., shutting down a quarter-mile section from the South Van Ness/Mission exit to the Octavia/Market exit, said CHP Officer Mark Andrews, a spokesman for the Highway Patrol's San Francisco area office.
"The world is watching a genocide unfold," Lara Kiswani, executive director of the Arab Resource and Organizing Center, said in a press release. "We are taking a stand to say no to genocide, no to war, no to invasion. Ceasefire now."
The demonstration affected Highway 101 at northbound Highway 101 at the split between the highway and Interstate 80, according to a public alert from the San Francisco Department of Emergency Management.
The CHP estimated there were more than 15,000 protesters forcing a temporary shutdown of all traffic coming into San Francisco from the Bay Bridge.
The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management said the highway was reopened about 5:30 p.m. but advised drivers to expect continued delays.