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JUST IN: Protests against military contractors underway in Crystal City

By ARLnow.com
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(Updated at 10:30 a.m.) A group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators are protesting outside of the offices of prominent military contractors in Crystal City this morning.

The protest started in front of the Boeing corporate headquarters at 929 Long Bridge Drive and then marched to the Lockheed Martin building at 2121 Crystal Drive.

“Stand with Palestinian resistance!” says a sign held by the protesters, as seen on a video posted to social media. “End all funding of Israeli apartheid.”

A large police presence is on scene, observing the protest. The Arlington County Fire Department has also dispatched a sizable medical and bomb squad response to standby near the Lockheed Martin building, with the protest expected to grow, according to scanner traffic.

As of 9:45 a.m., part of Crystal Drive was closed to traffic. As of 10:30 a.m., the protesters were reportedly getting ready to march back to the Boeing office, prompting fire department resources to start leaving the scene.

Similar but smaller protests took place this past fall. Another pro-Palestinian protest remains camped out in front of Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s house in Arlington.

The latest protests come as Israel weighs a response to a largely failed Iranian missile and drone barrage over the weekend, amid the war with Hamas that has devastated much of the Gaza Strip.