Group of Anti-ICE Protesters Arrested at World Trade Center after Reports on Forced Hysterectomies

New York City police arrested a group of protesters on Thursday evening during a demonstration against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement over the allegation that doctors have performed unwanted hysterectomies at the borders.

Eight protesters were arrested as a group of 50 to 60 made their way from Foley Square to World Trade Center, the New York Post reported, though an officer on the scene told the paper “a whole bunch of people were arrested.”

Videos of the protest on Twitter show a large number of police, including cops on bikes who created a barricade to keep protesters off the street.

One protester had allegedly pushed a police officer, while most were arrested for blocking the roadway.

Of demonstrators taken into custody for blocking the street, one was found to be in possession of a metal expandable baton and was charged for criminal possession of a weapon.

Protesters were responding to allegations from a nurse at the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia that women detained by ICE at the center were sent to a doctor outside the facility who performed involuntary hysterectomies on them.

In a recent interview with National Review, deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli, said he had asked the Office of Inspector General to expedite its existing review of the allegation. He will also send three DHS staff members to conduct their own parallel investigation this week, he said.

“Particularly on the medical side, if any of the allegations were true, we’d be very concerned to correct them as quickly as possible,” Cuccinelli said. “I want to be clear that we don’t assume that a complaint is either accurate or inaccurate right out of the box, so we immediately started checking based on the allegations.”