ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Three people arrested Saturday are accused of blocking Interstate 4 near Lake Buena Vista while holding signs stating “Free Palestine,” according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Troopers responded around 5:11 p.m. to reports of two vehicles blocking westbound I-4 at mile marker 67, not far from Disney Springs, an FHP statement reads.
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Three women arrested at the scene were taken to the Orange County Jail before both of the vehicles were towed away, according to the statement.
The FHP on Sunday identified the women who were arrested as Isabella Giannosa, 26; Jenni Nguyen, 24; and My Truong, 24. All three currently face a misdemeanor charge of refusal to obey a police officer, court records show.
Elsewhere Saturday, Orlando police arrested two people and pepper sprayed a group at a pro-Palestine gathering of around 1,200 in Lake Eola Park. Those two have not yet been identified and would be charged with battery on a law enforcement officer, Orlando police said in a statement, adding most were demonstrating peacefully at the event and claiming no injuries were reported.
State Rep. Anna Eskamani, D-Orlando, said on social media that she was incredibly disappointed about what happened at the rally, calling the law enforcement reaction “totally uncalled for” and pointing out there were families in attendance.
There were many families attending today's rally in Downtown Orlando from across the state. Folks are peacefully protesting in a public park and this reaction from law enforcement was totally uncalled for and unnecessarily escalates the situation. Incredibly disappointed. https://t.co/Lo2r9yI1nC
— Rep. Anna V. Eskamani 🔨 (@AnnaForFlorida) May 11, 2024
State Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay, addressed the I-4 incident. He called the women who were arrested “terrorists” and said he expects them to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, adding, “We don’t tolerate Muslim terror here.”
Obstructing a roadway is a crime in Florida, and there is nothing peaceful about stopping pregnant women on their way to the hospital or an ambulance on the way to the emergency room. I am glad that law enforcement arrested these terrorists quickly, and expect them to be…
— Rep. Randy Fine (@VoteRandyFine) May 12, 2024
The rhetoric so thusly varies in reaction to Saturday’s arrests as the world’s has to the ongoing war in Gaza. As pro-Palestinian protests spread to college campuses nationwide for example, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke at the University of Florida to decry the demonstrations even as protesters could be heard nearby chanting “Free, free Palestine.”
The war began seven months ago as Hamas militants launched the unprecedented Oct. 7 raid into southern Israel — abducting some 250 hostages and killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians — leading to an Israeli military campaign that has already killed over 34,000 people and devastated the territory.
At latest, Israel is reported to be pushing deeper into the south Gaza city of Rafah, a place where around 1.3 million Palestinians with nowhere else to flee were taking refuge before this most recent military operation began. Israel has portrayed Rafah as Hamas’ last stronghold, saying it must invade in order to succeed in its goals of dismantling the group and returning scores of hostages.
Around 300,000 people have already left Rafah during the operation, with most said to have headed to the heavily damaged nearby city of Khan Younis or Mawasi, a crowded tent camp on the coast where some 450,000 people are already living in squalid conditions. The operation has also drawn warnings from Egypt, where an official said it is putting the country’s decades-old peace treaty with Israel at risk.
Note: This map depicts the general area of the scene and not necessarily its exact location.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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