Tuberville blasts pro-Palestinian protestors for taking down US flag near Capitol

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) on Wednesday lambasted pro-Palestinian protestors who took down at least one American flag at Union Station in Washington and replaced it with a Palestinian flag, calling it “absolutely shameful.”

Tuberville posted a photo to X of poles outside Union Station with Palestinian flags, instead of the usual U.S. flags, flying on Wednesday afternoon. Union station is just a couple of blocks from the Capitol. 

“Less than a mile from the U.S. Capitol, pro-Hamas protestors have taken down and burned AMERICAN FLAGS at Union Station to fly Palestinian flags,” Tuberville wrote on X. “Absolutely SHAMEFUL.”

The group of demonstrators outside of Union Station were among thousands to gather near the Capitol on Wednesday in protest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to a joint session of Congress.

It was not immediately clear whether protestors had burned a flag near Union Station. 

Union Station on July 24, 2024. (Yash Roy)

The protestors have called for an end to Israel’s war with Hamas, which has left more than 39,000 Palestinians dead in Gaza, per local health officials, and are demanding the arrest of Netanyahu, who has been charged with war crimes by the International Criminal Court.

Images that appeared to show a U.S. flag burning on the site could be widely seen in videos and photos on social media, while some protestors marched with posters reading “Netanyahu is a criminal.”

The U.S. Park Police responded to Columbus Circle where they said the demonstrators were “engaged in criminal activity and confronting law enforcement on scene.”

Police were seen taking down the Palestinian flags and the protestors’ permit for Columbus Circle was later revoked, according to park police. Law enforcement was observed pepper spraying some demonstrators.

At least six arrests were made, according to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), which made three of the arrests for protestors pushing officers. Three other arrests were made by park police, MPD said. Park police did not confirm the number of arrests.

The protests began Wednesday morning and continued after Netanyahu’s address to Congress. It was boycotted by several Democrats over Netanyahu’s refusal to end the war and inability to secure the release of hostages taken during Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack.

Eden Teshome and Yash Roy contributed.