Security tightened ahead of Israeli premier's address to US Congress

By Diyar Guldogan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Security has been tightened Wednesday in Washington ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to Congress.

Much of the Capitol area is closed to the public, as thousands of demonstrators are expected to protest Netanyahu’s speech.

A significantly larger police presence is visible and road closures began early in the morning.

Yellow “Police line, do not cross” tape is prominently displayed and only authorized personnel, including staffers and journalists, are allowed to cross.

Hundreds of protesters gathered Tuesday in the Cannon Rotunda inside the Capitol building to chant and demonstrate against Netanyahu’s policies in the Gaza Strip.

Capitol police reported that 200 protesters were arrested.

There will be a “zero-tolerance policy” for disturbances in the building on Wednesday.

Capitol Police said in a statement to Anadolu that it does not provide an exact number of officers assigned to the address for security reasons.

It said it has several partners including the New York Police Department and county agencies from across the national Capitol region.

"We can say that our plan includes adding more officers – including from several outside agencies – continuing our robust intelligence sharing with our partners, and ensuring that we have enough resources for our teams. We anticipate a large number of demonstrators to show up. We respect everyone’s First Amendment rights, however all demonstrations must be done peacefully and legally. We will soon provide more information about road closures around the U.S. Capitol and the status of the public’s access to the Congressional Buildings during the Prime Minister’s visit,” it said.