Eric Adams defends NYPD after violent arrests at Palestinian commemoration

NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Eric Adams defended the NYPD Monday against outrage from fellow Democrats over viral footage of officers attacking pro-Palestinian demonstrators Saturday.

“What you don't have the right to do is ride on top of buses. You don't have a right to spit in the faces of police officers, to destroy property, to resist arrest [and] to try to take a person under control of police … back,” the mayor, a retired police captain, said during a radio interview. “Those police officers did a commendable job under very difficult circumstances.”

Adams was responding to criticism from Democrats who span the ideological spectrum over the tactics captured on video: Officers punching several people while taking them into custody, shoving another person against a signpost and grabbing and arresting someone who was filming a group of officers walking down the street.

The unrest unfolded at an annual event in Bay Ridge — a Brooklyn neighborhood with a large Palestinian population — to commemorate the Nakba, a term Palestinians use to refer to their flight and expulsion before and during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

The mayor said he would review what he referred to as an “isolated incident.”

He went on to commend the department for its response and accused the protesters of going beyond their First Amendment rights by destroying property and prompting more than 60 calls to 911. The NYPD released footage overnight showing people hitting and throwing bottles at officers amid the chaos.

Democrats who represent Bay Ridge and are typically measured in their criticism of the NYPD, described the officers’ actions as unnecessarily aggressive .

The incident underscored Adams’ staunch defense of both policing and Israel — a position that puts him at odds with his left flank on two controversial and high-profile political issues. It also comes as he faces growing criticism on all sides ahead of his reelection next year.

Progressive Public Advocate Jumaane Williams penned an unusually acerbic assessment of the administration’s actions in Bay Ridge in a lengthy social media post.

Williams argued that Adams, in his strong support of Israel, has failed to represent the totality of New Yorkers and recognize the concerns of anyone supporting Palestinians.

“NYPD and individual officers should be held accountable,” he wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “However the truth is this Mayor holds the ultimate responsibility for not just allowing but encouraging; almost insisting that the response for anything Palestinian be escalation and disproportionate force.”