Media workers stage sit-in at New York Times HQ to call for ceasefire in Gaza

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators occupied the lobby of The New York Times on Thursday, demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza while accusing the media of showing a bias toward Israel in its coverage of Israel's war on Gaza.

Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the publication’s Manhattan headquarters. Many entered the building’s atrium for a sit-in and vigil that lasted more than an hour.

Led by a group of media workers calling themselves "Writers Bloc," demonstrators read off the names of thousands of Palestinians killed in Gaza, including at least 36 journalists whose deaths have been confirmed since the war began.

They scattered editions of a mock newspaper — "The New York War Crimes" — that charged the media with "complicity in laundering genocide" and called on the Times' editorial board to publicly back a ceasefire.

Over 100 journalists occupy the lobby of the New York Times building to call out the publication’s complicity in the ongoing genocide of Gaza.

To learn more about the plan to maintain sustained pressure on media and elected officials in NY and NJ, visit https://t.co/s9JCppPINb. pic.twitter.com/ag1FGSRUJj

— Palestinian Youth Movement (@palyouthmvmt) November 9, 2023

The New York Times has produced a special issue remembering Palestinian journalists slaughtered and targeted by #Israel's military in #Gaza. pic.twitter.com/DJtHclKVL3

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) November 10, 2023

The sit-in followed a series of actions at high-profile locations in New York intended to bring attention to the growing death toll in Gaza from Israel's bombardment.

On Tuesday, activists with the group Jewish Voice for Peace briefly took over the Statue of Liberty. The week prior, hundreds of people packed into Grand Central Terminal, shutting down the commuting hub during rush hour while hoisting banners that read "Ceasefire Now."

More than 10,800 people have been killed in Gaza by Israel's unprecedented bombardment - most of them civilians - since the 7 October attack by Hamas in southern Israel, which left at least 1,400 people dead.

It wasn’t immediately clear if anyone was arrested during the Thursday sit-in.

An email sent to New York Times staffers by the publication’s head of corporate security described the protest as "peaceful," noting that "no entrances are blocked."