Thousands of Israeli nationalists chant 'death to Arabs' during annual procession through Jerusalem

JERUSALEM (AP) — Chanting “Death to Arabs” and singing “May your village burn,” groups of young Israeli Jews made their way through Muslim neighborhoods of Jerusalem's Old City on Monday during an annual march marking Israel's conquest of the eastern part of the city.

Palestinian shopkeepers closed early and police lined the alleys ahead of the march that often becomes a rowdy and sometimes violent procession of ultranationalist Jews. A police officer raised his arms in celebration at one point, hugging a marcher. It was blazing hot, with temperatures hitting 98 degrees Fahrenheit (37 Celsius) in late afternoon.

Police kept a close watch as demonstrators jumped, danced and sang.

Hours earlier, a small group of protesters, including an Israeli member of parliament, stormed a compound in east Jerusalem belonging to the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA.

The march commemorates Jerusalem Day, which marks Israel’s capture of east Jerusalem, including the Old City and its holy sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims, in the 1967 Mideast war. The event threatened to inflame tensions that are rife in the city after nearly 600 days of war in Gaza.

Jerusalem lies at the heart of the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Each sees the city as a key part of their national and religious identity. It is one of the most intractable issues of the conflict and is often a flashpoint.

Israel considers all of Jerusalem to be its eternal, undivided capital. Its annexation of east Jerusalem is not internationally recognized. Palestinians want an independent state with east Jerusalem as its capital.

Last year’s procession, during the first year of the war in Gaza, saw ultranationalist Israelis attack a Palestinian journalist in the Old City and call for violence against Palestinians. Four years ago, the march helped set off an 11-day war in Gaza.

Tour buses carrying young ultranationalist Jews lined up near entrances to the Old City, bringing hundreds from outside Jerusalem, including settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

After this year’s march ended, Arab shopkeepers darted outside to begin scrubbing their shops, now covered with stickers reading “Gaza is ours.”

Police, who called the procession the “Dance of Flags,” said they had detained a number of people and “acted swiftly to prevent violence, confrontations and provocations.”

Speaking in an east Jerusalem archaeological park located in a Palestinian neighborhood, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to "preserve a united, whole Jerusalem, and the sovereignty of Israel.” He said the government was encouraging foreign embassies to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and investing billions of shekels in the city's development.

Volunteers from the pro-peace organization Standing Together and the Free Jerusalem collective, which works with Palestinians in Jerusalem, tried to position themselves between the marchers and residents to prevent violence.

One shopkeeper swept the floor after marchers tipped over his bale of bay leaves. A group of young Jewish Israelis followed a Palestinian woman through the streets, calling her “charmouta” — Arabic for “whore.”

“This is our home, this is our state," one protester shouted at a Palestinian woman.

“Go away from here!" she responded, in Hebrew.

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who oversees the country’s police force, visited a hilltop compound holy to Jews and Muslims, where Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock are located. One Israeli lawmaker, Yitzhak Kroizer, could be seen praying.

Perceived encroachments by Jews on the site have set off widespread violence on a number of occasions going back decades. Hamas accused Israel of “desecrating” the site when it launched its Oct. 7, 2023 attack.

“We are marking a holiday for Jerusalem,” Ben-Gvir said, accompanied by other lawmakers and a rabbi. “There are truly many Jews flooding the Temple Mount. How nice to see that.”

Beyadenu, an activist group that encourages Jewish visits to the site, said dozens of people had ascended to the compound draped in the Israeli flag, and had prayed there.

Since Israel captured the site in 1967, a tenuous understanding between Israeli and Muslim religious authorities at the compound has allowed Jews — who revere the site as the Temple Mount, the location of the biblical temples — to visit but not pray there.

Ben-Gvir said he is changing that status quo. Palestinians say it has long been eroding because of an increase in Jewish visits.

“Today, thank God, it is possible to pray on the Temple Mount,” Ben-Gvir said, according to a statement from his office.

The prime minister's office said there has been no change to the status quo. Police said Monday's march would not enter the site.

For many in Israel, Jerusalem Day is a joyous occasion that marks a moment of redemption in their country's history, when access to the key Jewish holy site of the Western Wall was restored and the city was unified. But in recent years, the Jerusalem Day march has been dominated by young nationalist and religious Israelis.

UNRWA West Bank coordinator Roland Friedrich said around a dozen Israeli protesters, including Yulia Malinovsky, one of the legislators behind an Israeli law that banned UNRWA, forcefully entered the compound, climbing its main gate in view of Israeli police.

Protesters held a banner calling for the compound to be turned into an Israeli settlement. Israel’s housing minister said last year he had instructed the ministry to “examine how to return the area to the state of Israel and utilize it for housing.”

Israel has accused the agency, the biggest aid provider in Gaza, of being infiltrated by Hamas, allegations the U.N. has denied.

There was no immediate comment from Israeli police.

The compound has stood mainly empty since the end of January, after UNRWA asked staff not to work from there, fearing for their safety. The U.N. says it has not vacated the compound and that it is protected under international law.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Israelis participate in a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Damascus Gate of Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israelis participate in a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Damascus Gate of Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israelis participate in a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israelis sit next to a closed Palestinian shop during a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli police scuffle with young Israelis marching through Jerusalem's Old City marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War, Monday, May 26, 2025. (Photo: AP/Leo Correa)

Israelis wave national flags during a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israeli police scuffle with young Israelis marching through Jerusalem's Old City marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East War, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli police officers assist a Palestinian man after he was pushed by Israelis as they mark Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli police officers escort Palestinian women while Israelis marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli police scuffle with Israeli youths during a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israelis wave national flags during a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Israeli youths argue with police during a march marking Jerusalem Day, an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, May 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Members of Jewish youth movements unfurl a giant Israeli flag on the eve of Jerusalem Day an Israeli holiday celebrating the capture of the Old City during the 1967 Mideast war, next to the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sunday, May 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.

In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.

Video of the clash taken by The Associated Press showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.

Immigrant advocacy groups have conducted extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.

But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away.

More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News on Sunday that the administration would send additional federal agents to Minnesota to protect immigration officers and continue enforcement.

The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer on Wednesday.

“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”

Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.

People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.

More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .

“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.

The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.

Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.

While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.

“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."

The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.

Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”

"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.

Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”

The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests in cities across the country over the weekend, including New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Oakland, California.

Contributing were Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; Thomas Strong in Washington; Bill Barrow in Atlanta; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio.

A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)

Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)