SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Pro-Palestinian protestors disrupted a Memorial Day event at Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento on Monday.
The Sacramento Police Department said about 50 protestors arrived and disrupted the public event at the auditorium.
The event was hosted by the Veterans Affiliated Council, Sacramento and Vicinity. It started at 10 a.m.
The event was interrupted, Commander of the Affiliated Veterans Council William Franco III told ABC10, but the event stayed on schedule. The open house portion following the event was canceled.
"That was the first time I've ever been protested at an event, which is OK. I don't think of it as a bad thing, I think of it as something that we learn from," Franco said.
Franco said that veterans and military professionals fought and continue to fight to preserve democracy and First Amendment rights including freedom of speech.
The protestors left red hand prints on the steps leading up to the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium. Messages, stuffed animals, and children's shoes were left by protestors in front of the auditorium.
An Instagram post from Sacramento Stands with Palestine says the protest was in response to the situation in Rafah, Gaza. The group is calling for the U.S. to end "aid to Israel, and a complete end to the occupation of Palestine."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Monday that a “tragic mistake” had been made after an Israeli strike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah set fire to a tent camp housing displaced Palestinians and, according to local officials, killed at least 45 people.
The strike only added to the surging international criticism Israel has faced over its war with Hamas, with even its closest allies expressing outrage at civilian deaths. Israel insists it adheres to international law even as it faces scrutiny in the world’s top courts, one of which last week demanded that it halt the offensive in Rafah.
Netanyahu did not elaborate on the error. Israel's military initially said it had carried out a precise airstrike on a Hamas compound, killing two senior militants. As details of the strike and fire emerged, the military said it had opened an investigation into the deaths of civilians.
Some streets in the area of J and 15th streets were closed due to the demonstration. The police department advised drivers to avoid the area as roads in the area will be closed as the protestors march through.
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