US cities beef up security over fears of violence amid Israel's war on Gaza

Police in New York, Los Angeles, and other US cities have increased patrols, authorities put up fencing around the US Capitol, and some schools closed amid fears of violence inspired by the fight between Israel and Palestinian resistance groups.

But law enforcement officials stressed on Friday there were no credible threats in the US.

Law enforcement officials said they were on high alert for violence driven by antisemitic or Islamophobic sentiments in the wake of the fight.

Muslim and Jewish groups have reported an increase in hateful and threatening rhetoric on social media.

At the Palestinian American Community Center in Clifton, New Jersey, Executive Director Rania Mustafa said there has been an increase in harassing phone calls, emails and messages on social media.

Mustafa said the group has closed its doors and is only letting in people they know or who identify themselves.

"It's been a very stressful week in all regards, from one end, trying to convince the world that we’re human and that our lives are as sacred as anyone else's lives and on the other end, trying to protect our own from being targeted. And protecting freedom of speech, of expressing opinions and solidarity with the Palestinian people," she said.

"We cannot and do not discount the possibility that Hamas or any other foreign terrorist organisations could exploit the conflict to call on their supporters to conduct attacks here on our own soil," FBI Director Christopher Wray told Jewish community leaders at a security briefing on Thursday.

Israeli strikes on besieged Gaza have killed at least 1,900 people, including 614 children, the Palestinian territory's Health Ministry said late on Friday.

Some 370 women were among those killed in the seven days of air strikes, it said. It added that 7,696 people have been wounded.

More than 1,300 Israelis have been killed in the largest attack by Hamas against Israel in decades.

Heavy security presence in New York

On Thursday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams told reporters that police would do extra patrols in some city neighbourhoods and send additional resources to schools and houses of worship.

There has been a large police presence at protests, rallies and vigils in the city over the past week.

Some synagogues have also said they would have private security guards.

Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul stressed that law enforcement wasn't aware of any credible threats against the state or the city.

"We want to reiterate to New Yorkers: There’s no reason to feel afraid. No one should feel they have to alter their normal lives or their routines, and indeed, when we change our behaviour without a serious, credible threat, then we’re letting the terrorists win," Hochul said.

"I want all New Yorkers to feel confident going to a synagogue, going to school, walking in the streets of New York and throughout our state."

Meanwhile, Inna Vernikov, a New York City council member was arrested on Friday for bringing a handgun to a student demonstration supporting Palestinians.

Vernikov, a Republican who is Jewish, has been among the most outspoken opponents of Palestinian activists, describing the protesters as "terrorists" while accusing them of making Jewish students feel unsafe.

She was seen in photos and videos with the butt of a pistol jutting from her waistband.

New York City’s public university system has seen a wave of duelling protests in recent days following the fight and the escalating war in Gaza.

Columbia University halted public access to its Manhattan campus on Thursday in advance of a planned demonstration by pro-Palestine activists and a rival pro-Israel group, saying only students, faculty and credentialed journalists would be allowed in.

The demonstrations wound up being peaceful.

Other cities

In Washington, crews were seen putting metal barriers outside the Capitol on Thursday evening.

A Capitol police spokesperson said in an email they were "not taking any chances" even though there are no specific threats.

Las Vegas' Innovations International Charter School, which has a campus located in a former Jewish temple, said on Friday they were cancelling classes out of an "abundance of caution."

Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Maryland, also closed its campuses, telling parents in an email that there was no specific threat to the school, but it, too, was acting out of "an abundance of caution."

Los Angeles, police said they were reaching out to Muslim and Jewish communities and providing extra patrols.

In Boston, police, since the beginning of the conflict, have increased their uniformed presence around religious and cultural institutions, a spokesperson said on Friday.