Two protesters were arrested at a pro-Palestinian march in Philly during the Christmas shopping rush

Hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched through Center City on Saturday afternoon to disrupt the last-minute Christmas shopping blitz with sorrowful reminders of the ongoing siege in Gaza — a protest that culminated in a tense standoff with police officers and the arrest of two protesters for disorderly conduct near Rittenhouse Square, authorities said.

Cpl. Jasmine Reilly, a Philadelphia Police Department spokesperson, said a demonstrator attempted to put a sticker on a police vehicle near the park. As the protest was winding down, an officer was seen confronting the man, drawing his baton, and placing him in handcuffs — to a loud rebuke from the crowd.

Megaphone-wielding leaders of the Philly Palestine Coalition, the activist network that organized the march, urged demonstrators to not intervene. But a section of the crowd circled police officers as they attempted to make the arrest, demanding police release the man. Two officers sustained minor injuries during the scuffle, Reilly said. Soon after, police arrested a second demonstrator near 18th Street for allegedly spraying liquid at officers as the crowd was dispersing around 4:30 p.m.

The Philly Palestine Coalition has organized or promoted over 60 demonstrations since the start of the war, from massive protests on the streets of Center City to sit-ins on college campuses. Saturday’s rally was the latest in a string targeting holiday shoppers out buying last-minute gifts two days before Christmas.

“While you’re shopping, bombs are dropping!” protesters chanted repeatedly throughout the three-hour march.

Gaza’s health ministry reported this past week that more than 20,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched military retaliation for the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack. The bloodshed in Gaza has led Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank to suspend Christmas celebrations — most notably in Bethlehem, where Jesus was reportedly born — and activists in Philadelphia and across the United States have similarly called for a more somber observance of the Christian holy day this year.

“We cannot celebrate while our siblings in Gaza are being massacred,” Jay Bergen, pastor of Germantown Mennonite Church, told protesters who gathered on the bustling City Hall apron around 2 p.m.

In addition to a familiar repertoire of protest chants, demonstrators intoned “from Philly to Bethlehem, no Christmas as usual!” as they marched around the pop-up Christmas Village, past the Fashion District, through Chinatown, and west along the popular Walnut Street retail strip near Rittenhouse.

Organizers also stopped the march to protest outside two different Starbucks locations, amid a nationwide dispute between the corporate coffee giant and a pro-Palestinian workers’ union.

The demonstration halted in Rittenhouse Square before 4 p.m., where speakers from the progressive group Jewish Voice for Peace and members of the Philly Palestine Coalition gave speeches and called for a cease-fire in the war.

When a police officer began apprehending the demonstrator at the edge of the rally, a group of demonstrators attempted to intervene in the arrest. A crew of officers on bicycles created a barrier around the officer and the man he had detained, and were circled by demonstrators. For nearly 10 minutes, the two sides were at a standoff, at times pushing and shoving. Demonstrators demanded police release the man, and as the confrontation intensified, the crowd started a chant likening the Philadelphia Police Department to the Klu Klux Klan and the Israel Defense Forces.

Nada Abuasi, an organizer with Philly Palestine Coalition, said she did not see what transpired leading up to the arrest. While she felt the use of stickers fell under the umbrella of peaceful protest, she stressed that the coalition never encourages demonstrators to cause damage to people or property.

“All of our protests are peaceful,” Abuasi said. “We come out here, we’re a very diverse group, we’re out in solidarity. Yeah, we’re here to disrupt and make sure that there is no business as usual, but it’s not in any way where we’re projecting harm onto others or any buildings — or anything of that nature.”

The activist network has faced some criticism due to its protest tactics, most notably after a march organized by the coalition stopped and chanted at Goldie, an Israeli-owned falafel spot on Sansom Street near 19th Street.Members of Jewish Voice for Peace, who are part of the coalition, have been arrested for blocking traffic during other recent demonstrations.

Before the march kicked off on Saturday, speakers encouraged protesters to rely on volunteer legal observers with Up Against the Law Legal Collective to communicate with police and dissuaded the crowd from engaging. “It’s always our priority to be safe in our marches,” Abuasi said.

Organizers called for a moment of silence before asking the crowd to disperse — for the night, but not for long. Abuasi said the coalition has other demonstrations planned before the new year.