Gaza agitators storm, occupy Israeli consulate in San Francisco

The protesters entered the building and were seen yelling about the Israel-Hamas war.

“All of us should not allow Israeli embassies, Zionist institutions, universities ... the US government, who are all complicit in this genocide and an active genocide, to go without disrupting them,” one protester is heard in a video.

The building occupiers held up signs, wore masks, and donned pride flags as they demanded a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. In one post on social media, a woman with a blowhorn said that they are coming for all the “Zionist” organizations, including the “right-wing white nationalist organizations that protect and defend Israel.”

A statement from Consul General Marco Sermoneta read, “We are appalled, but not surprised, at the attempt by a handful of pro-Hamas rioters to violently compromise our ability to operate as a diplomatic mission. They will not succeed.”

“The people who entered the lobby of the building where the Consulate is situated are the same people who have celebrated the rape, maiming, burning alive, and murder of hundreds of Israelis barely a day after October 7th. Since then, these mobs have been making campuses across the Bay Area inhospitable and even dangerous to Jews, and turning city council meetings into despicable spectacles of antisemitism and mass-atrocity denial. We thank SFPD for their rapid response and will continue to ensure that we provide all services as usual,” the statement added.

The police were on the scene after being notified of the building’s occupation. The protesters were seen chanting with a “Zionism Kills” banner on the wall as the police approached the building.

The activist group also issued a statement on their social media after taking the building.

The statement from the Bay Area pro-Palestine activist group said, “A collective of over a hundred SF Bay Area people of conscience are taking over the Israeli consulate in San Francisco in response to international solidarity call from students in Gaza. Linking arms, unfurling larger banners and art, and filling the lobby with chants, we will remain until arrested to continue to condemn the ongoing genocide in Palestine.”

The occupation of the Israeli embassy follows the Israeli army going into Rafah in order to finish off the last of Hamas.