VALLEJO – Authorities arrested 38 people Monday in reference to war protests within the Gaza Strip that temporarily closed the Golden Gate Bridge and Interstate 880 in Oakland.
Around 6:15 a.m., protesters blocked northbound I-880 at Embarcadero by chaining themselves to 55-gallon drums stuffed with concrete, the California Highway Patrol said in a news release.
Officers used jackhammers and high-powered saws to free the protesters before arresting seven people. All lanes of the highway were opened at 1:15 p.m., CHP said.
Another protest with chained participants began around 7:55 a.m. on the Golden Gate Bridge. The CHP said it arrested 26 people, towed 4 vehicles and opened the bridge as of 12:15 p.m
Back on I-880 around 8:15 a.m., about 300 protesters blocked the southbound lanes at seventh Street. According to the CHP, five people were arrested and all lanes were opened by 1 p.m.
The charges ranged from illegal assembly to conspiracy to commit a criminal offense and false imprisonment.
“This was a complex operation and the California Highway Patrol made every effort to clear lanes as quickly as possible,” the CHP said within the news release.
It was the second time protesters closed major highways within the Bay Area since Hamas's Oct. 7 attack on Israel plunged the Middle East into bloody conflict and sparked protests across the United States.
Monday's demonstrations were a part of a worldwide “economic blockade” by pro-Palestinian activists on April 15. A web site called A15Action.com said the move was geared toward “blocking the arteries of capitalism and paralyzing the wheels of production” because “the global economy is complicit in genocide.” Similar demonstrations took place in other US cities, including Chicago, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon.
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