A Philadelphia Police Department spokeswoman told JNS that none of the anti-Israel protesters who took part in a Nov. 8 bicycle ride filed a report about being assaulted at the event, which targeted Israeli- and Jewish-owned restaurants in the country’s sixth-largest city.
The anti-Israel cycling club called Philly Bike On Your Left canceled a “ride of return” that had been scheduled to take place in the city on Nov. 15. It claimed that counter-protesters assaulted participants during its prior event.
“No riders reported being assaulted, spat on or harmed,” the police spokeswoman told JNS.
She said that counter-protesters—supporters of the six targeted eateries who turned out in much larger numbers last Sunday—tried to block the anti-Israel ride when it began at Rittenhouse Square in downtown Philadelphia. “Police cleared a path and urged both groups to keep disagreements verbal, not physical,” the police spokeswoman told JNS.
Philly Bike On Your Left, the group that was to host the latest event on Nov. 15, said cyclists were “spat on, groped and sexually assaulted” last Sunday and that “tacks were thrown at riders.”
“Flags, signs and banners were snatched,” the group stated on social media. “Several people were slapped, kicked and swatted at, called racial slurs and received death threats against them and their families.”
The Pennsylvania governor and Philadelphia mayor were among many elected officials to call the Nov. 8 gathering antisemitic. The cycling group said that it was critical of Israel, but not of Jews themselves.
Three people were arrested in connection with the protest and counter-protest on Nov. 8, according to the police spokeswoman. One was a counter-protester “arrested for disorderly conduct after repeatedly ignoring warnings,” she told JNS. The others received verbal warnings.
No riders reported to the department that they were “assaulted, spat on or harmed,” but “police will investigate any such report,” the police spokeswoman told JNS.
Footage that circulated on Sunday that appeared to show interviews with anti-Israel cyclists seemed to show some making blatantly antisemitic remarks. Organizers claimed that the videos were “fake” and dubbed with “comments that were never made.”
“We feel that this event has been hijacked by pro-Israel extremists searching for a reason to commit racially motivated violence,” it said, of canceling the ride slated for Nov. 15.
The Philly Israel Alliance plans to organize a ride starting at the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Nov. 15.
“Police will protect all participants at the bike ride starting at 12:00 p.m. at the art museum this Sunday, as well as any counter-protesters,” the police spokeswoman told JNS.
