Protesters briefly disrupt Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Pro-Palestinian protesters briefly disrupted the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Thursday morning, gluing their hands to the ground on Sixth Avenue and diverting the parade route.

The protesters shouted “Liberation for Palestine and planet!” and "Free Palestine!" and threw a red liquid onto Sixth Avenue, north of 44th Street. 

An NYPD spokesman said there was "an unscheduled demonstration" at about 9:50 a.m. and "several individuals were taken into custody."

There were at least a half-dozen protesters wearing jumpsuits covered in fake blood. Several of the protesters glued themselves to the street in front of a float carrying characters from fast food giant McDonald's. The parade continued around them as police officers prepared to unglue them.

Spectators jeered the protesters and cheered the NYPD cops who unglued, and then detained, the protesters.

The war in the Middle East, which has stoked tensions across the region, began after Hamas militants killed about 1,200 Israelis Oct. 7 and took about 240 hostages. Israel’s attacks in Gaza in response have killed more than 13,300, according to the health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza. Most deaths in Gaza have been of women and minors, the health ministry has said. Another 6,000 people are missing and feared to be buried under the rubble.

A four-day cease-fire is scheduled to begin Friday morning and 50 Israeli hostages are to be freed in exchange for the release of 150 Palestinian prisoners. 

Later in the day, there were also arrests at an hourslong demonstration, held at Madison Square Park, by the group called Within Our Lifetime, United for Palestine, according to an NYPD spokesman. No further details were available, he said.

Apart from the protest, the rest of the parade appeared to go on as planned.

Beloved character balloons like Snoopy and SpongeBob SquarePants soared through the skies and bands marched along the streets below.

The parade started on the Upper West Side, making its way alongside Central Park in front of big crowds before ending in front of Macy's flagship store, on 34th Street.

Among the performers were Cher, Jon Batiste, Bell Biv DeVoe, Brandy, Jessie James Decker, Pentatonix and Miss America 2023 Grace Stanke. 

Axxin Law, 11, of Uniondale watched with his dad and stepmom and said he was impressed.

“It’s way better than I thought,” said Law, a sixth-grader at Lawrence Road Middle School. “I thought it was just gonna be like a little parade with a couple of things, like just a turkey.”

But, he said, there were “a bunch of cooler things,” especially the Smokey Bear balloon.

Samantha Fanuka, 24, of Northport was attending her second Thanksgiving parade. She brought her roommate from Vancouver and a friend from California.

Her favorite part of the parade was Santa.

“It welcomes in Christmas,” she said.

Cary Marnoldjos, a kindergarten teacher from Bushwick, Brooklyn, and wife of an NYPD officer, was in a special area at 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue reserved for family and friends of the NYPD and FDNY.

“We don’t wait. We walk right up,” she said, as nearby police union trucks served the group hot dogs, coffee, doughnuts and more.

This was her 10th parade.

“We enjoy seeing the floats, the bands and the energy to start off the holiday season,” she said. 

Special education teacher Christa Wiggin of Merrick was at the parade to introduce her daughters to an event she watched as a kid.

“For me, it’s the memories," she said.

"I used to watch it with my family growing up, on TV. Now I’ve got the opportunity to bring my daughters here in person, so we’re making new memories.”

With AP