Right outside of the White House, you can find Lafayette Park, a site filled with historic landmarks including statues honoring Andrew Jackson and other notable figures including Major General Marquis Gilbert de Lafayette, from which the park derives its name. For many decades, the park has also been the site of many political protests, a tradition that continued this weekend. But these protesters were not there to raise their voices peacefully. These were pro-Hamas, anti-Israel protesters who were determined to literally leave their mark on the scene. They vandalized the statues and generally trashed the place. When the police attempted to clear them out, they rushed the law enforcement officers. Despite all of the illegal activity taking place, not one person was arrested when all was said and done. Is it any wonder that they keep doing this? (Daily Wire)

Various law enforcement agencies said they did not make any arrests related to the anti-Israel protest on Saturday in which people trashed a park next to the White House.

The Secret Service, D.C. police, and U.S. Park Police told The Washington Free Beacon that they did not detain anyone in connection to the demonstration at Lafayette Park in Washington, D.C., that left a number of statues vandalized.

As noted by NBC News, police said they attempted to arrest one person who climbed a statue, but that individual got away as members of the crowd intervened and officers deployed pepper spray.

You can see some of the damage in this brief video from Fox Business, along with seeing the protesters pelting park rangers and police with bottles and chanting obscenities. 

Just as a reminder, this wasn't simply a case of disturbing the peace. Damaging or defacing federal monuments is a felony punishable by significant jail time. Physically attacking the police is also a serious crime. Yet not one person managed to be arrested. To their credit, the police did attempt to climb up and arrest one protester who was up on one of the statues, but the mob intervened, allowing him to get away. They then chased off the cops, chanting “You have to leave” and “F*** the police."

Anti-Israel protesters formed a mob and chased US Park Police and Secret Service out of Lafayette Square after officers apparently tried to arrest someone. Police are no longer inside the park and are on the boundaries of the protest: “F*ck the police!” pic.twitter.com/N5EctSe8Ya

— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) June 8, 2024

Some of the members of the mob weren't even wearing masks, which is unusual for this pack of cowards. Since the whole event was caught on video from multiple angles, perhaps the Park Police are reviewing that footage to identify some of the suspects, and arrests might be made later. But will they go through with it? Most of these pro-Hamas protesters around the country have been given a pass thus far, almost as if there is some sort of official policy against pursuing them. That shouldn't be the case. Free speech is protected. Violence against law enforcement and vandalism are not.

It's not as if other people aren't being arrested elsewhere, frequently for far less problematic behavior. Do you recall the kids who were busted for driving scooters across a pride mural that was painted on the street? They were hauled away in record time and they didn't vandalize or deface anything. In fact, they were protesting the street being defaced. That certainly sounds like a two-tiered system of justice to me.

If these people are really so determined to see an end to the war in Gaza, the best thing they could do is stand aside and let Israel finish its work. The rest of the hostages must be rescued or released. With Hamas defeated, life in the Gaza Strip can start returning to normal, or as close to normal as things ever get there. In fact, life could potentially be even better and safer than it was before the war began since the West will no doubt be paying to clean up all of the damage. Of course, then we'll need to figure out who is going to run the place. Thus far nobody seems to have a clue.