Pro-Palestinian protestors block Port of Tacoma to delay ship believed to be Israel-bound

Pro-Palestine protest at Port of Tacoma

Pro-Palestine protesters blocked a ship for hours that was headed to the Middle East. The group said the ship is headed to Israel to deliver weapons and other military equipment.

TACOMA, Wash. - More than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered early Monday morning at the Port of Tacoma to block an incoming ship that will later be heading to the Middle East.

Organizers said the ship Cape Orlando, a U.S. military supply vessel, will be going to Israel and delivering weapons and other military equipment.

Demonstrators were at the port's Terminal 7 to stop the cargo from being loaded onto the vessel. FOX 13 was at the scene, where the group blocked the entrance to the port by marching in the area and using cars.

The vessel is expected to arrive at the Port of Tacoma Monday.

Tacoma police said traffic was blocked near the port on 11th Street from Port of Tacoma Road to Milwaukee Way due to the protest. Officers are there to help direct traffic.

The ship was in Oakland, California last week to pick up similar cargo, the group said. On Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard removed three people from the vessel Cape Orlando during a protest in the Oakland Harbor.

Israeli troops divided the northern and southern parts of Gaza, as communications across the besieged territory were temporarily cut Monday for a third time since the war started. The troops are expected to enter Gaza City on Monday or Tuesday, Israeli media reported.

The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war surpassed 10,000, including more than 4,100 children and 2,640 women, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.

The developments came after Israeli airstrikes hit two refugee camps in the central Gaza Strip on Sunday, killing scores of people, health officials said. Israel has so far rejected U.S. suggestions that it take a humanitarian pause from its relentless bombardment of Gaza and the rising civilian deaths.

In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack that started the fighting, and 242 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.