Eight anti-Israel protesters were busted during a wild march late Thursday – and cops are still hunting a ski mask-wearing agitator who bashed an NYPD cop in the face with a metal barricade, police said.
The march – led by the notorious Within Our Lifetime group – began at Cadman Plaza, continued over the Brooklyn Bridge, and passed through City Hall Park, Union Square Park and finally Madison Square Park.
By around 8:15 p.m., as protesters converged on Union Square Park, an unidentified agitator tried to stop the 39-year-old officer from moving a metal barricade, cops said.
As the aggressor struggled to hold onto the barrier, he slammed it into the cop’s face, authorities said.
The suspect then ran off and had not been caught by Friday. Police released a photo of the man, last seen wearing all black, in hopes of tracking him down.
The injured officer was taken to a local hospital, where he was listed in stable condition, police said.
Meanwhile, video from the park shows one demonstrator who had climbed on top of the iconic bronze George Washington sculpture inside the park straddling the shoulders of the figure as the NYPD used a cherry picker to bring him down.
He is shown being led away in handcuffs, but his name and charges were not immediately known.
Of the eight people in custody, five were formally arrested and charged and three were slapped with summonses for disorderly conduct, according to the NYPD.
It’s unclear what the other charges were.
The march was held on “Nakba Day” — marking what Palestinians call the “catastrophe” of Israel’s founding on May 14, 1948.
The rally came three days before the annual Israel Day Parade is set to kick off on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue.
There are “no specific or credible threats” directed toward the parade, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Friday.
“But as always, we remain vigilant that the public can expect to see a robust and visible police presence throughout the area,” the top cop told reporters.
Mayor Eric Adams said the city is well-prepared for any protests that may surround the gathering, which spans from 62nd to 74th streets.
“It is not our prediction, it is our preparation,” Adams said. “If we practice, we’re always ready. No matter what we face, we see over and over again, even of these sporadic pop-up protests that you witnessed, the city is able to move on with their daily activities.”
“So we will be prepared, and that’s why we are creating an environment where we can inspect who’s coming into the parade site, how we’re going to control the flow of people and ensure that we have proper deployment of personnel.”
