A halal restaurant in Queens is facing backlash after posting a photo of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Biden on the sidewalk outside its restaurant, but the owner seems unfazed by the criticism.
The pro-Zionist group Betar USA has called the statue, which customers must step on to enter The King of Falafel and Shawarma in Astoria, an “anti-Semitic and anti-American document” on public property and is calling on the mayor's office to remove it.
Israeli and American leaders have even been labeled war criminals, as part of a demagoguery that has become rather exhausting after months of being there.
Photos painted on the sidewalk and on the restaurant's floors also feature leaders the owner believes are overly supportive of Israel, including Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir, former President Donald Trump, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Gov. Kathy Hokul and Mayor Eric Adams.
Betar spokeswoman Meredith Weiss said the group wants the city to immediately remove the posters, which are on public sidewalks.
“If the owner of the falafel restaurant in question truly cared about the well-being of the people of Gaza, he would be focused on condemning Hamas' repressive leadership,” Weiss said in a statement to The Washington Post.
“This is nothing more than a cheap PR stunt to flaunt hatred towards Jews and America. These bearers of hate are fundamentally un-American and have no place in New York.”
“Enough with the empty words. It's time for responsible leaders to move beyond divisive rhetoric and take a stand instead of perpetuating an agenda rooted in hate,” she added.
“The city is becoming increasingly confused as the authorities seem to turn a blind eye to violence and hatred and the atmosphere of hostility towards the Jewish community continues,” Betar argued in a letter sent to city hall on Friday.
Queens Rabbi David Aglais said the image was “inappropriate” and “incites hatred.”
“This is a perfect example of their callousness and lack of humanity. Stomping on someone's face is an incitement to violence,” said Rabbi Havrat Israel of Forest Hills. “This is a tragedy because it divides communities and pits people against each other.”
But Fares “Freddy” Paideia, the owner of a stall selling authentic Palestinian street food, insisted the display was not anti-Semitic and did not target only Jewish leaders.
He claimed he was a pro-Palestinian protester with “equal opportunities” and pointed out that he also had a photo of Saudi Arabia's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas lying on the ground because he considered them to be former friends of Israel.
“It's not just about being Jewish. There are Middle Eastern people as well,” Paideia told The Post on Sunday. “There are Palestinian leaders as well. I'm not saying specifically about any one group.”
He said he had placed the posters on the sidewalk because he had become increasingly outraged by the Gaza conflict, which began when Hamas terrorists massacred 1,200 Israelis in a brutal surprise attack and abducted another 250 into Palestinian-controlled territory.
“If it was just Israeli leaders, I would understand why they were upset, but I haven't been specific,” he said, insisting he had chosen a form of protest that didn't harm anyone and that he supported a two-state solution.
Inside the restaurant, there are statues of world leaders on the floor as well as a mural depicting the bloody war in Gaza, in which bombs destroyed buildings and killed civilians, including journalists and children.
Paideia is no stranger to stirring up politics, noting that Saudi Arabia was “making fun of me like crazy” a few years ago when social distancing stickers featuring pictures of bin Salman and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan caused a furor. The Queens Chronicle reported at the time.
“It's not a big deal. I think we got like 40,000 one-star reviews in about 24 hours,” he argued.
The move was praised by Jordanian-Palestinian writer and activist Sam Husseini, who tweeted on Sunday that he would “stomp on genocide on the floor,” while Halal's Instagram account wrote that “stomping on Netanyahu's face is therapeutic.”
City officials said the transportation department is investigating the incident.
“Mayor Adams firmly opposes hate speech and discrimination in any form,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
Paideia said he wouldn't resist if city officials wanted to remove the sidewalk paintings.
“These are my first two legs, that's it. If they want to come and take it out, they can take it out. I have no problem,” he said. “There's still the interior and the bathroom.”
Additional reporting by Aneeta Bhole
