Washington State Patrol investigating protesters who blocked I-5

The Washington State Patrol is investigating multiple people suspected of organizing a protest that blocked I-5 through downtown Seattle on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2023.

Washington State Patrol Chief John R. Batiste issued a statement Thursday morning, five days after the protest.

"The Washington State Patrol is actively investigating several individuals involved in orchestrating Saturday's protest and will be referring cases to the King County Prosecutor's Office as appropriate," Batiste said.

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WSP further states that intentional disruption of traffic on a freeway puts lives in danger, and puts livelihoods at risk.

"It's dangerous and simply cannot be tolerated."

WSP recently told KUOW that it was not prepared for the "sheer size of the crowd" on I-5. Batiste's statement also notes that the "sophistication and scale" of the protest "presented unique challenges."

Activists blocked the freeway Saturday afternoon in a call for a ceasefire in Gaza. With an outsized military, Israel responded to Hamas' October attack by overwhelming Gaza, and has only recently pulled back troops. An estimated 22,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October, as hunger and disease surges amid the attacks. Israeli officials state that despite pulling back troops, the conflict is not over. This week, the United Nations began hearings over accusations, lead by South Africa, that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza.

At least eight people were arrested at last weekend's I-5 protest in Seattle. Activists chained themselves together with a device called a "sleeping dragon." WSP told KUOW that special training is required to safely remove the device from protesters. Activists also left their vehicles on the freeway, blocking traffic. WSP used bomb-sniffing dogs to search for explosives.

The protest on I-5 was not the first demonstration in Seattle over the Israel-Hamas war, though it was the first to block freeway traffic. Protestors blocked the University Bridge in December. Groups associated with the protests include: the Palestinian feminist organization Falastiniyat; the Seattle chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace; Samidoun Seattle; and Students United for Palestinian Equality & Return at the University of Washington.

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