Duffy slams MTA over 'fact check' on anti-Israel mob's Grand Central takeover
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy got into an online exchange with New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) after an anti-Israel mob took over Grand Central Station.
On Monday night, anti-Israel agitators with the group Within Our Lifetime (WOL) protested in the train station’s main concourse. The protest took place hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House.
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Duffy condemned the protesters in a post on X, saying it was "disgusting" to see "antisemitic mobs shutting down transit centers." He also called for the organizers to be held accountable.
The MTA disputed the claim in a comment on the secretary’s post and said, "Grand Central Terminal was never shut down and service was not affected." The statement was attributed to MTA Chief of Security Michael Kemper. However, online video and one of the protest organizers say otherwise.
WOL founder Nerdeen Kiswani said in her own X post, "NYPD shut down multiple entrances" at Grand Central during the protest as demonstrators "brought the heart of NYC to a halt."
Kiswani also detailed the group’s history of demonstrating in Grand Central, saying that in the past they did not need permits or arrests and that there were "no lockdowns."
In response to the MTA’s "fact check," Duffy wrote, "Service was not affected? Tell that to the Jewish Americans who feared for their lives while this went on. This is why no one trusts the MTA to keep them safe anymore."
Duffy also called on the MTA to condemn the "antisemitic mob," adding that not doing so was "enabling this harassment."
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Grand Central Station, New York City’s iconic train station, has seen a host of anti-Israel protests since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023.
On Oct. 27, 2023, just 20 days after Hamas’ massacre, anti-Israel protesters flooded Grand Central, forcing it to shut down. The demonstrators were demanding a ceasefire and unfurled a banner that read, "mourn for the dead, and fight like hell for the living."
"It's disappointing that this group elected to stage a protest that interfered with New Yorkers getting home from work and otherwise going about their business," the MTA wrote in a statement on Oct. 27, 2023.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the Transportation Department and the MTA regarding the exchange and the protest that took place on April 7, 2025.