House Republicans are placing the spotlight back on a violent pro-Hamas uprising in the nation's capital last summer that vandalized federal property, assaulted police officers, and torched the American flag.
This week, the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee's GOP-led Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing, titled "Desecrating Old Glory: Investigating How the Pro-Hamas Protests Turned National Park Service Land into a Violent Disgrace."
The House Committee on Natural Resources is holding a hearing about this abomination today https://t.co/pjWG8YKZ6A
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) December 10, 2024
Though previously postponed, the congressional panel's proceeding Tuesday continued to probe the July riot when pro-Hamas radicals descended on Washington, D.C.
On July 24, 2024, a mass gathering of Hamas sympathizers converged in front of Union Station, feet from the U.S. Capitol, to protest the appearance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Capitol Hill. Organizers advertised the uprising on social media as a "National Mobilization" effort to "Surround the Capitol" and "Arrest Netanyahu" in conjunction with him addressing a joint session of Congress.
The anti-Israel agitators burned an effigy of Netanyahu and chanted "Allahu Akbar." Among other acts captured on camera, the rioters defaced the Columbus Plaza monument and replica Liberty Bell located there with pro-Hamas graffiti, including insurrectionist sayings such as "Abolish the U.S.A." and "Hamas Is Coming"; hurled human feces at law enforcement officers; set the American flag ablaze after tearing it down; and installed the Palestinian flag in its place.
PRO-PALESTINE PROTESTORS ARE BURNING THE AMERICAN FLAG‼️
— elise mccue (@EliseMcCue) July 24, 2024
They’ve taken down all three American flags outside Union Station and replaced them with the Palestinian one.
A paper mache Netanyahu has been thrown into the campfire as well.
Police are nowhere to be seen.… pic.twitter.com/cyteake1HF
Subcommittee chairman Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) said it's "confounding" that the National Park Service would even grant ANSWER Coalition a public gathering permit, given the group's "troubling history of disorder and violence."
ANSWER Coalition had led the large protest that quickly devolved into an unlawful free-for-all riot, resulting in the permit's revocation.
As part of the broader "Shut It Down for Palestine" movement, ANSWER Coalition is involved in a number of pro-Hamas protests across the United States, including the far-left encampments on college campuses. ANSWER Coalition and its partners concerningly have well-documented ties to Hamas, Iran, and the Chinese Communist Party.
Mark Lee Greenblatt, inspector general of the U.S. Department of the Interior, as well as Charles Cuvelier of the National Park Service were called on to testify before the investigative body and answer questions about the agency's questionable permitting process.
Committee chairman Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) asked Cuvelier if anyone in the agency expressed concerns regarding ANSWER Coalition's radical background ahead of greenlighting the event.
"We based our issuance of the permit upon what the applicant had put forth there," Cuvelier said.
He noted that the National Park Service's pre-event planning involved an interagency partnership with the U.S. Secret Service and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
"We rely upon intelligence to drive our decision-making. There was no actional intelligence related to the permitted event to deny a permit or otherwise adjudicate it," Cuvelier said.
Furthermore, he added, "We were informed by the ANSWER Coalition that they would provide an adequate amount of marshals to conduct themselves in good order as part of the permit."
"Initially, when the First Amendment demonstration was underway, there was no violence. It did begin in good order, sir. But for those reasons in the early planning stages, there was no reason to deny them a permit," Cuvelier maintained.
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