Chevalier among 80 arrested at Manhattan protest

Darializa Avila Chevalier was among about 80 protesters arrested Thursday after demonstrators blocked a Manhattan roadway during a protest opposing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s appearance at the United Nations and U.S. involvement in Israel’s war in Gaza. Reports described roughly 250 people at the demonstration near First Avenue and East 39th Street. The protest took place ahead of Netanyahu’s address to the U.N. General Assembly. Organized by Jewish Voice for Peace, the demonstration included New York elected officials, candidates and other activists. Protesters sat in the roadway and called for an end to U.S. support for Israel; police directed them to leave, and officers arrested those who remained, according to accounts of the scene. Chevalier, the Democratic nominee for New York’s 13th Congressional District, was among those taken into custody. City Council members Chi Ossé and Alexa Avilés were also reported arrested. The accounts differ on details of the arrests, but describe officers moving in after protesters blocked traffic and did not clear the street. One report said about 80 people were arrested; another gave a range of 80 to 100.