NYC prepares for day of large protests, high security alerts as Israel-Hamas war escalates

State and city leaders maintain there is no credible threat of organized attacks in New York City, but officials remain on “high alert” as the war between Israel and Hamas escalates and a large demonstration is planned in Times Square on Friday.

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What you need to know about the rally in Times Square

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• Demonstrators who gathered in Times Square for a rally in support of Palestinians were met with a heavy police presence Friday afternoon, just as New York City officials had promised the day before.
• By 2:30 p.m. Friday, police had barricaded the entrance to Broadway at 42nd Street, allowing only protesters to enter.
• Read our live coverage of the rally in Times Square here.

The New York Times reported that overnight Israel ordered roughly 1.1 million Palestinians in northern Gaza to move south within 24 hours, as it appears to be readying a ground invasion of the territory in response to last week’s attack by Hamas. The United Nations urged Israel to rescind the order, which it said could have “devastating humanitarian consequences.”

In New York City, a large protest was gearing up in Times Square on Friday afternoon, mostly organized by pro-Palestinian groups but, like protests throughout college campuses Thursday, pro-Israel demonstrators were expected to show up for counterprotests.

The protest began on Friday afternoon, and hundreds of officers are monitoring the event for potential violence. Officials urged non-protesters to avoid the area, where there is heavy traffic.

Smaller demonstrations had already emerged by mid-morning. About a dozen pro-Palestinian activists, ranging from members of Muslim advocacy groups to anti-Zionist Jews, gathered outside City Hall just before 10 a.m. to call for an end to the Israeli blockade on Gaza and ongoing violence and to criticize Mayor Eric Adams and other politicians for continuing to align themselves with Israel.

Some passersby jeered at the group, shouting “What about Hamas?" and threatening violence.

Lamis Deek, an attorney with the National Lawyers Guild who was born and raised in the West Bank, criticized the media for not giving credence to Palestinians.

“All of you, respectfully, have erased us,” said Deek, a member of the pro-Palestinian group Al-Awda and a co-founder of the Palestinian Assembly for Liberation.

In an evening briefing with reporters on Thursday, Adams said he ordered additional NYPD officers to patrol schools, houses of worship and certain neighborhoods in anticipation of Friday's protests.

Public schools were open on Friday, though there have been reports of some yeshivas closing for the day, as well as of houses of worship conducting religious services remotely. There are currently no planned road closures as a result of protests, according to the NYPD.

MTA officials said law enforcement would be more readily apparent, with even plainclothes police officers directed to wear uniforms.

“We are more visible and more prepared than ever,” MTA Chair Janno Lieber said on Friday at Grand Central Terminal. “Emphasis on the fact that not only do we have the NYPD and the MTA PD, but at Gov. Hochul’s action, the state police and National Guard are also present in major transportation facilities today.”

Concerns over violence and unrest in the city increased on Thursday after a former Hamas leader called for worldwide demonstrations in support of Palestinians. Scattered, low-level violent incidents between Jewish and Muslim New Yorkers have also put the city on edge, prompting the mayor to join Gov. Kathy Hochul, the NYPD and other officials to emphasize on Thursday that the city faced no specific, credible threats.

As of Friday morning, the NYPD said that is still the case and the security measures will proceed as planned.

New Jersey officials were also bracing for unrest but, like New York, said there were no credible threats.

In Jersey City, Nagwa Salah, an Egyptian clerk at Al Amana Supermarket, expressed outrage about the ongoing violence overseas and media coverage in the U.S. and Europe.

“We need the peace,” Salah said with tears in her eyes on Friday. “What about Palestinian? This is their land. This is their history.”

On his way out of Greenville Shul in Jersey City, Yosef Weiss lamented the violence coming from Hamas.

“It's a very sad thing — the things that we're witnessing … I mean, I don't remember in history something to that kind of effect,” Weiss, a Williamsburg resident, said on Friday. “The way they're behaving, the way they’ve been killing people.”

Rabbi Ben Feuerwerger, who also walked out of Greenville Shul, said that the added security in New Jersey made him “hope everything will be good.”

“It's very, very sad what happened last Saturday that so many men, women, children, elderly people got killed, and now the danger is still not over,” Feuerwerger said.

“The city will do whatever it takes to keep our people safe,” Adams said on Thursday evening.

Hochul said she was directing state police to work with the NYPD on providing security around an array of locations, including synagogues and cultural institutions. She said she had also asked the National Guard to patrol key transportation hubs. Despite ordering a surge in police presence, the governor urged New Yorkers to go about their normal lives.

Elizabeth Kim and Stephen Nessen contributed reporting.

This is a developing story and has been updated.