From the Liveblog of
Thursday, August 21, 2025
Anti-Israel protesters in New York claim they were assaulted by staff at Egyptian UN mission
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleLuke Tress is The Times of Israel's New York correspondent.
Anti-Israel activists in New York City claim they were assaulted yesterday by staff at the Egyptian mission to the UN.
Video shows men at the mission pulling two activists into the building and appearing to strike them.
Other footage shows two young men being escorted from the mission by police officers after the incident. They appear unscathed.
It’s unclear what preceded the altercation.
The protesters are holding regular rallies at the mission demanding Egypt do more to aid the Palestinians.
???? EMERGENCY ACTION THURSDAY AUGUST 21 at 2PM: EGYPTIAN MISSIOM IN NYC (304 E 44th St #306, New York, NY 10017) ????
Egypt is not just a bystander, it is complicit in the US-Israeli genocide in Gaza. The Sisi regime keeps Rafah closed, collaborates with Israel, and now its thugs… pic.twitter.com/65GHzwHwNk
— Nerdeen Kiswani (@NerdeenKiswani) August 20, 2025
The footage is shared widely by activist groups and spurs calls for additional rallies at the mission, including later today.
The incident comes days after a video leaked of Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty berating Egypt’s ambassador to The Netherlands, asserting that the mission’s staff needs to take a harder line against those protesting outside the embassy.
Protests have ramped up around the UN ahead of the UN General Assembly next month.
The rallies are led by Within Our Lifetime, a hardline activist group that advocates for the violent destruction of Israel.
The protests are targeting diplomatic offices of Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Turkey.
The Times of Israel Community.