Former Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal called for protests across the Muslim world on Friday in support of the Palestinians and encouraged people from neighboring countries to join the fight against Israel.
As soon as the announcement was made, warnings were sent out worldwide due to the risks that protests entail, such as terrorist threats. Throughout the country, warnings were sent out in cities like New York, where the police department announced that, although so far "there are no specific and credible threats," there will be an increased police presence, especially in places of Jewish worship, schools and neighborhoods:
We are aware of the concern that postings circulating online have caused, and we have increased our uniform deployments at large gatherings and cultural sites to ensure public safety out of an abundance of caution.
Other cities in the country issue warnings
In Washington DC, the Capitol Police announced that they were "enhancing security" in order to keep all citizens "safe."
We are enhancing security throughout the Capitol Complex. Some of what we are doing will be visible, but for safety reasons, we cannot provide the public details about all of the resources that we are putting into protecting the Congress.
Statements regarding the 'Global Day of Jihad' were also issued in Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston and Los Angeles. Likewise, various law enforcement agencies in South Florida announced that they are increasing security at places of worship and some schools on Friday despite there being no specific or credible threats.
The FBI is taking steps to ensure the safety of Americans: "As always, we take seriously any tips or leads we receive about potential threats and rigorously investigate them to determine their credibility (...) The FBI encourages the public to remain alert and report anything they consider suspicious to the authorities.
Protests around the world in favor of terrorists
In response to Hamas' call, worldwide thousands of anti-Israeli demonstrators took to the streets (especially in the Middle East). In Yemen, a large number of people came out to its capital (Sana'a) to protest. In Beirut (Lebanon) supporters of the terrorist group Hezbollah called for "death to Israel" and shouted phrases supporting Gaza.
Jordan, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Egypt are other countries where protests were also reported.
