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Hamas, Hezbollah flags fly at anti-Israel protest minutes after Mamdani condemns terror plot against Jews

Hamas, Hezbollah flags fly at anti-Israel protest minutes after Mamdani condemns terror plot against Jews

Several masked demonstrators carried Hamas flags at an anti-Israel protest in Manhattan on Friday, while a Hezbollah flag waved above the crowd, hours after federal authorities charged an alleged Kataib Hezbollah operative of plotting attacks on Jewish community centers and a Manhattan synagogue. The protest drew about 500 demonstrators carrying Palestinian flags to Washington Square Park, where chants of “globalize the intifada” rang out as one speaker declared Israel has no right to exist and said Palestinians would take over Israel “by any means necessary.” Just as the protest was kicking off at around 4:30 p.m., New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani condemned the alleged terror plot by Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, a commander in the Kataeb Hezbollah terrorist operation in Iraq. “Let me be clear: antisemitism, violent extremism, and terrorism have no place in our city. This kind of hate is despicable,” Mamdani said. ISRAEL, JEWS TARGETED WORLDWIDE AS WELL-FUNDED LEFTIST, ISLAMIST GROUPS JOIN FOR ‘NAKBA 78’ PROTESTS Two minutes later, a starkly different scene unfolded in Lower Manhattan off W. 4th Street. The activists descended on the busy Washington Square Park with Palestinian flags, pre-printed signs and banners, transforming a corner of the park into a rally staging ground to protest the existence of the state of Israel and demand its dismantling and replacement with a state called Palestine. Among them, a young anti-Israel demonstrator arrived, draped in the flag of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades — Hamas’s military wing — wearing it like a cape. The flag depicted a masked armed fighter beside the Dome of the Rock beneath green script in Arabic, declaring the shahada, or Muslim proclamation of faith. He also carried a flag featuring an image of Abu Obaida, the spokesman for Hamas’ military wing, who became one of the terror group’s most recognizable figures after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Israeli forces killed him in 2025. Others followed wearing the green headbands of Hamas and carrying similar flags. Nearby, a protester carried Hezbollah’s bright yellow flag, featuring the organization’s recognizable green insignia of a stylized assault rifle incorporated into Arabic calligraphy. The demonstration was organized by anti-Israel groups including the Muslim American Society — a powerful nonprofit whose leaders supported Mamdani’s election — and Within Our Lifetime, another local group. Protesters arrived carrying pre-made banners over their shoulders, stacks of professionally printed signs and a North Face bag filled with protest gear.  These same groups led protests at a Jewish synagogue and community center in New York City this past week, resulting in viral clashes with Jewish community members. Based in Brooklyn, N.Y., next to an NYPD precinct, Muslim American Society of New York is a 501(c)(3) sister nonprofit of Muslim American Society. It had $782,644 in revenue in 2024, according to its last tax filing. Within Our Lifetime isn’t a nonprofit but accepts donations. FIRST ON FOX: NEW STUDY REVEALS ‘PRO-PALESTINIAN’ GROUPS PROMOTE VIOLENCE AND ANTI-AMERICANISM ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS CLASH WITH NYPD OFFICERS NEAR SYNAGOGUE By about 5:06 p.m., Within Our Lifetime’s polarizing co-founder, Nerdeen Kiswani, emerged from the crowd at the Washington Square Arch and led chants of “Globalize the intifada! From New York to Gaza! Globalize the intifada!” “We do not mince words here,” Kiswani told the crowd. “Yes, that also means necessarily that the state of Israel and Zionism must be abolished. I do not and will never recognize Israel’s so-called right to exist. It has no right to exist.”  Minutes later, at about 5:14 p.m., Abdullah Akl, a leader at the Muslim American Society Youth Center in Brooklyn, stood in front of a large black banner that read “GLOBALIZE THE INTIFADA” in white and gold letters. “From the river to the sea,” Akl shouted, invoking a slogan widely interpreted as calling for the elimination of Israel between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. “Palestine will be free.” As demonstrators readied to march north through Manhattan, several participants openly waved Hamas flags above the crowd. When asked about the displays, Kiswani told Fox News Digital: “We only bring Palestinian flags.” But the Hamas flags remained visible throughout the march, including directly behind Kiswani and Akl as demonstrators moved uptown in a tightly coordinated procession. Kiswani told Fox News Digital, “We only bring Palestinian flags.” The Manhattan protest was one of about 736 “Nakba Day” events that 425 organizations with about $1 billion in collective revenue held across 39 cities in recent days, according to a Fox News Digital investigation. “Nakba,” the Arabic word for “catastrophe,” refers to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. Chants throughout the evening rejected the idea of a two-state solution. “We don’t want your two states,” demonstrators shouted, following Kiswani’s cue, as organizers moved the march route through Manhattan, past Sephora, the makeup store, on E. 14th Street. Protesters beat drums decorated with stickers reading, “By Any Means Necessary,” while marchers carried a banner declaring, “From Gaza to Jenin. Revolution Until Victory.” In the crowd, activists from Islamist and communist groups marched together, including Al-Awda, which advocates for the so-called “right of return” of diaspora Palestinians to Israel, the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, a self-declared Marxist group, and the Workers World Party, which describes itself as a “revolutionary Marxist-Leninist party inside the belly of the imperialist beast.” A group of Orthodox Jewish demonstrators also marched beside pro-Palestinian activists carrying signs reading “Judaism condemns the state of Israel” and “Torah demands all Palestine.” Rabbi David Feldman told Fox News Digital he believed “the state of Israel may not exist at all” under Jewish law and said Palestinians should regain “every inch” of land taken from them. About Hamas, he said, “They don’t target against Jewish people, so I don’t think that they are a terrorist group. They’re just fighting for the land, what people stole from them, that’s all. So that’s what I believe, so I don’t say anything in politics, that is all.” But the Hamas supporters went undisturbed as they flew a flag of the terrorist group

How Democratic leadership sank $40 million meant to defend key seats on a gamble that backfired

How Democratic leadership sank million meant to defend key seats on a gamble that backfired

Democrats, already lagging behind Republicans in midterm campaign fundraising, relied heavily on a House Democratic-aligned dark-money group in an attempt to redraw Virginia’s congressional map in their favor, campaign finance records show. Before voters cast their ballots in Virginia’s April redistricting referendum, the 10 wealthiest Republican-aligned political committees had close to twice as much cash on hand as their Democratic counterparts, according to Federal Election Commission records.  Despite this, Democratic-aligned groups poured more than $64 million into their attempt to net four congressional seats by redrawing Virginia’s congressional map, a bet that ultimately failed to pay off after the Virginia Supreme Court invalidated the redistricting process due to a procedural constitutional violation.  “House Democratic candidates are pulling in massive fundraising hauls, outraising their GOP opponents last quarter, and the DCCC just had its best quarter of fundraising for the cycle,” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Viet Shelton told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. DARK MONEY FLOODS VIRGINIA AHEAD OF REDISTRICTING VOTE THAT COULD HAND DEMOCRATS HOUSE EDGE  “While Republicans brag about their billionaire backers, Democrats are focused on building support amongst the people – and by every measure, we are poised to take back the majority and make Hakeem Jeffries the next Speaker of the People’s House,” Shelton added. Of the total Democratic spending on the Virginia redistricting election, roughly $40 million in contributions came from House Majority Forward, a Democratic-aligned 501(c)(4) nonprofit affiliated with House Majority PAC, the super PAC backing House Democrats. Some Democratic strategists have argued the political environment remains favorable, but party insiders have warned that the GOP’s cash advantage could blunt those gains. “I don’t think it has broken through, the level of money that Donald Trump and Republicans are sitting on as it compares to Democrats,” Mike Smith, who leads House Majority Forward and the affiliated House Majority PAC, told NOTUS in April. “I don’t think there’s a comprehensive understanding of both the level of disparity and what that could mean in terms of us being able to win the House.” Smith did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Wednesday. At the end of March, the 10 biggest Republican political committees had nearly $1 billion in cash on hand, compared to the approximately $550 million held by their 10 richest Democratic counterparts, per FEC data. The wealthiest GOP committees included President Donald Trump’s MAGA Inc. and the Senate Leadership Fund, which is affiliated with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. Democrats, meanwhile, were led by the Soros family’s Democracy PACs and the Senate Majority PAC. “So-called ‘Leader’ Hakeem Jeffries lit well north of $55 million on fire chasing illegal redistricting fantasies, only to fall flat on his face in spectacular fashion,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Mike Marinella told Fox News Digital. “National Democrats are already drowning in a massive cash deficit against Republicans while the NRCC and our battle-tested candidates continue shattering fundraising records and building momentum for 2026.” The “well north of $55 million” Marinella referred to included the $17 million House Majority PAC spent on the successful redistricting effort in California.  Aside from the financial role the Democrat-aligned committee played in Virginia’s redistricting effort, the House minority leader was a leading surrogate for the campaign. He delivered speeches in favor of redistricting, characterizing the effort as a response to GOP map changes and raising the stakes by declaring Virginia the “crown jewel” of a national battle over congressional maps. REPUBLICAN FUNDRAISING OUTPACES DEMOCRATS BY NEARLY DOUBLE, JUNE NUMBERS SHOW “Jeffries is proving he’s no Nancy Pelosi, and Democrats are getting an expensive lesson in the difference between media hype and actual leadership,” Marinella continued.  Pelosi was one of her party’s most prolific fundraisers, raising over $1 billion for the party between her appointment as House Minority Whip in 2002 and her resignation from Democratic leadership in 2022, according to CBS News. Sources have told the New York Post that Pelosi retains considerable influence over the operations of House Democrats, which has allegedly irritated Jeffries. “Speaker Emerita Pelosi is exceptionally proud of Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his masterful strategy to fight fire with fire on the path to retaking the House in November,” a spokesman for the former speaker told Fox News Digital. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’, D-N.Y, office did not respond to a request for comment when reached by Fox News Digital on Wednesday. House Majority Forward has historically been one of the primary sources of funds for the House Majority PAC, a major Democratic committee affiliated with Democrat leaders, that itself is one of the top sources of cash for congressional Democrats, according to FEC filings. House Majority Forward and House Majority PAC are sister organizations. “HMF’s support matched the $40 million Republicans invested in the recent redistricting election, and once again their pro-war, costs-raising, toxic agenda was soundly rejected by Virginians,” House Majority Forward communications director CJ Warnke told Fox News Digital. “No amount of GOP money will prevent Leader Hakeem Jeffries from becoming the next Speaker of the House.” LEFT-WING BILLIONAIRES BANKROLL DEM SUPER PAC PLOTTING TO WIN BACK WORKING-CLASS VOTERS: ‘THIS IS A PRIORITY’ House Majority Forward is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that is not required to publicly disclose its donors. Its contributions allow money from undisclosed donors to move into the political process through publicly reported donations to House Majority PAC. While Republicans are financially dominant across major committees, Democrats have built considerable leads at the campaign level in some key congressional races.  Democratic candidates have raised more than their GOP opponents in closely watched Senate races in Georgia, Alaska, Ohio, Michigan and Maine, according to campaign finance data analyzed by NPR. Thirteen Republicans running in hotly contested House races have been out raised by Democratic challengers, compared to just four Democrats defending competitive seats who were out raised, Roll Call reported. Republican members of Congress in toss-up seats, however, raised more on average than Democrats defending similarly competitive seats during the first three months of 2026,

Trump blasts Sen Bill Cassidy as ‘disloyal disaster,’ pushes challenger Julia Letlow in Louisiana GOP primary

Trump blasts Sen Bill Cassidy as ‘disloyal disaster,’ pushes challenger Julia Letlow in Louisiana GOP primary

President Donald Trump bashed Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who is running for reelection, in a Saturday morning Truth Social Post, calling him a “sleazebag” and “a terrible guy.”  Trump originally endorsed Cassidy’s leading primary challenger, Rep. Julia Letlow, R-La., in January, and renewed his support for her in his Saturday message. “VOTE TODAY FOR JULIA L. She Is a winner who will NEVER let you down,” Trump wrote.  Trump’s criticisms of Cassidy centered on the Senator’s vote to convict Trump during his 2021 impeachment. “Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana is a disloyal disaster. His entire past campaign for the Senate was about ‘TRUMP,’ how he’s with me all the way, and then, after winning, he turned around and voted to IMPEACH me for something that has now proven to be total ‘bull—-!’” Trump wrote. “He knew that at the time, but didn’t care.” Cassidy voted yes to convict Trump on a single article of impeachment which accused Trump of inciting insurrection in 2021.  “Our Constitution and our country is more important than any one person. I voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty,” Cassidy said at the time.  TRUMP PICK JULIA LETLOW FIRES BACK AT CASSIDY BY CLAIMING HER PAST DEI WORK WAS HIJACKED BY LEFT He has been mired in an adversarial relationship with Trump ever since.  As chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Cassidy was instrumental in advancing the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Trump’s Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary. But he did so only after extracting a number of concessions from Kennedy Jr. and heavily criticized Kennedy’s past stances on vaccine safety.  Trump then blasted Cassidy in April, blaming him for the failed nomination of Kennedy Jr. ally Casey Means as Surgeon General.  “For months, Senator Bill Cassidy (of the GREAT State of Louisiana!), a very disloyal person whose ‘TRUMP’ Endorsement got him elected, but later voted to impeach ‘President Trump’ on what has now proven to be a total Hoax and Scam, has stood in the way of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Nominee, Casey Means, for the important position of U.S. Surgeon General,” Trump wrote in an April 30 post on Truth Social. TRUMP TURNS SIGHTS ON BILL CASSIDY, THOMAS MASSIE AFTER DECISIVE INDIANA PRIMARY VICTORIES He has ramped up his attacks on Cassidy ahead of Saturday’s GOP primary in Louisiana while continuing to boost Letlow, who he endorsed before she even officially entered the race. “Not only did he encourage me to get into this race, but also to have his complete and total endorsement has been, wow, the honor of a lifetime,” Letlow previously told Fox News Digital.  Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser and Luke Trevisan contributed to this report.