On July 24, I decided to walk the short distance from my home near Congress to see the aftermath of the pro-Hamas protests and riots I’d observed online. Little did I know that my choice to carry a symbol of American support for Israel would result in my being attacked by pro-Hamas rioters.

Earlier that day, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu came to D.C. to address a joint session of Congress. The day before, protesters occupied the Capitol Rotunda. The day of Netanyahu’s speech, demonstrations and riots broke out across D.C., focused on the Capitol Complex, Union Station, and the Watergate Hotel, where Netanyahu was staying. I work in Near East policy for the Philos Project, an organization dedicated to promoting positive Christian engagement with Israel, its Arab neighbors, and the Christian communities across the region. These protests brought my work abroad home to my very neighborhood.

Having heard about the desecration of the flag that many of my relatives and ancestors fought and bled for, I chose to carry a joint American–Israeli flag to symbolize the affinity of our two nations and their unity in the face of the forces that hate us. I had many expletives hurled at me — but also a few quiet nods of support — as I approached Union Station. When I reached it shortly after 5 p.m., the scene was worse than I’d imagined. Many of us have seen the videos of what had already taken place: Mobs stole U.S. flags from flagpoles on federal property and proceeded to spit on, jeer at, and burn them. Amid the aftermath, I found Luke Moon, my colleague and the head of the Philos Project, who was headed home via a train out of Union Station. Then things escalated.

I passed off my American–Israeli flag to Luke, who has for years stood as a resolute ally of the Jewish people following antisemitic attacks. You can tell a lot about people by whom they hate. It was evident as a mob of pro-Hamas protesters began to gather around us that flying these two symbols together aroused even more hate than they had for each nation alone. The “big Satan” and the “little Satan,” as Islamic terrorists designate these two countries, are hated jointly for a reason.

These protesters rapidly descended on us, shouting and getting in our faces. After a few minutes, a core group of about twelve pro-American and pro-Israeli passersby also rallied to our side. It was a perfect representation of how the average American of goodwill doesn’t always know how to confront radical and hateful forces but will coalesce should a standard-bearer step forth. We were menaced but unharmed for the rest of my time in the crowd, likely also thanks to a group of police officers who came closer to us after a particularly boisterous protester harangued us.

After about half an hour, I began to walk home. Right as I was about to cross the street between Union Station and the Senate, two Palestinian-flag-wearing men in their early 20s sprinted up from behind me, lunged at me, and attempted to rip the flag from my hand. My grip held, and the force of their running lunge pulled us all to the ground. I wrestled to keep hold of the flag and fought them off me and stood back up. Visibly shaken by facing resistance, they both got up and sprinted back toward Union Station to fade into the mob of their allies.

All of this happened in full view of over 20 police officers who were behind barricades in the Senate Park facing toward Union Station. As far as I know, no action to detain the assailants was made, despite my efforts. I eventually found an officer to take a report. I await the results of their investigation if one occurs. The force of the lunge from behind at the flag and the fall onto concrete created lacerations on both my hands, left knee, and left ankle, where blood filled my sock. After the incident, many passersby who were wearing keffiyehs, Palestinian-flag apparel, and pro-Hamas signs yelled at me and sided with the assailants, indicating they endorsed the attack for the crime of carrying a combined American–Israeli flag.

All of this happened not just in our nation’s capital, but a few hundred yards from Congress and the Supreme Court, which for centuries have enshrined the right to peaceful protest. Pro-Hamas protesters — many of whom had cheered as the American flag was burned, the flag of Hamas was flown, monuments vandalized, and police and citizens assaulted by their compatriots — thought the penalty for a citizen walking the sidewalk carrying an American and Israeli flag was violence.

This perfectly summaries the struggle we face today. To quote Netanyahu’s poignant address on July 24: This is not a “clash of civilizations, this is a clash of civilization against barbarism.” Whether on the streets of Gaza or the streets of Washington, D.C, these enemies of humanity employ and acclaim the use of violence for their cause.

I have been to dozens of political rallies, events, protests, and riots in my life, many specifically on the issue of Israel and the Palestinians. However, since October 7, I have seen a new bloodlust and almost-demonic spirit animate the mobs that descend on the capital. In my ten years living in D.C., I’ve seen the BLM riots, January 6, and elections come and go. But the volume of violence and animus that the pro-Hamas forces bring with them and leave in their wake on our venerated monuments and the bodies of police and citizens who dare to disagree with them is uniquely vile.

What happened on July 24 was an abomination. I’m fortunate that my own encounter was minor and ended with the assailants learning that sometimes they fail and face physical consequences for initiating surprise attacks. But the real damage done by the pro-Hamas mob was not to D.C. or its inhabitants. It was to the remaining shreds of moral credibility the mob’s participants sought to claim. If your cause leads you to steal American flags and burn them, assault people, desecrate monuments, and write love messages to terrorist organizations in graffiti, there are simply no common values you can appeal to in the American populace. The vast swath of Americans, liberal, conservative, or apolitical, see the truth. These mobs hate the very soil they spit upon and the common people who make up our great nation.

Our enemies who hate the Judeo-Christian civilizations of the United States and Israel will not stop until they are met with stalwart standard-bearers and resolute resistance. You can descend upon our cities like locusts to the field, but you can never eat away at the fabric of our republic. We honor our flags not for the cloth, but for the principles for which they stand. You’ll never eradicate our love of freedom and value for life. Not while even one last patriot draws breath.