More than 1,000 pro-Palestine protestors descend on Met Gala as riot-gear cops make dozens of arrests and drag people from street near star-studded event

More than 1,000 pro-Palestine protestors clashed with the NYPD just blocks away from New York's Met Gala on Monday evening.

Hundreds were seen marching from Hunter College a mile away but they were met with a swift response from the NYPD who had been bracing for the possibility that demonstrators might make an appearance at the star-studded event. 

Dozens of protestors were arrested along Madison Avenue as the police attempted to ensure none of the demonstrators spilled over onto neighboring Fifth Avenue where the Met Gala was happening.

Initially, the police appeared to be successful in diverting the protestors away from where the Gala was taking place leaving the bulk of protestors marching down Park Avenue several blocks away - but it wasn't long demonstrator smashed through metal barriers and began walking down Fifth Avenue. 

Protestors could be seen holding placards, banging drums, waving flags and chanting 'free, free Palestine!' Others set off flares and red and green smoke - the colors of the Palestinian flag.

The protests — officially billed as part of a 'Day Of Rage For Gaza: From The Encampments To The Streets' — began earlier on Monday afternoon at Columbia University and NYU downtown with the two groups merging close to the Gala.

A woman was forced to the ground by officers with the NYPD as she was placed under arrest 

One thousand pro-Palestine protestors clashed with the NYPD just a block away from New York's Met Gala on Monday evening

Dozens of protestors were arrested along Madison Avenue and East 84th Street as the police attempted to ensure none of the demonstrators spilled over to neighboring Fifth Avenue where the Met Gala was taking place

Hundreds marched from Hunter College to where the gala washappening

Protestors were met with a swift response from the NYPD who had been bracing for them

A woman wearing a keffiyeh is placed under arrest by the NYPD

Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator near the Met Gala

Police face pro-Palestinian demonstrators near the Met Gala

Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator near the Met Gala on Monday evening

Demonstrators were promptly arrested after refusing to obey police demands

Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator near the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Police arrest an ultra-Orthodox Jewish pro-Palestinian demonstrator near the Met Gala 

Police arrest a pro-Palestinian demonstrator near the Met Gala 

Dozens of people were arrested by the NYPD on Monday night

The protestors could be seen marching along Fifth Avenue towards the Met Gala 

Various signs showing support for Palestine were held

A pro-Palestinian protester is apprehended on-site even before the Met Gala begins in New York City

Both protests met up at CUNY Hunter College at 5pm - just one mile from the Met, or about 20 minutes walk away before they made their way uptown.

After facing off with police, demonstrators started to march along Park Avenue blocking the southbound lanes. 

One protestor was quickly placed in handcuffs and arrested by police even before the event started. 

Other uniformed officers could be seen walking along the streets armed with dozens of plastic zip-ties should any further protestors wish to make an appearance and cause disruption. 

The NYPD had earlier said that it was well prepared, adding that it would 'have an adequate security deployment.'

NYPD sources said the Met will have a larger security contingent than normal with both plain clothes police inside and outside the museum along Fifth Avenue, at the iconic Upper East Side venue.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, along with the police, noted how 'outside agitators' had been involved in the college demonstrations that had overrun college campuses across the city over the last two weeks. 

Protestors were met with a swift response from the NYPD who had been bracing for the possibility that protestors might make an appearance

Officers take a person away in handcuffs outside the 2024 Met Gala on Monday evening

Actor Chris Hemsworth and his wife make a grand entrance under tight New York Police Department security at the Met Gala in New York City

On Monday afternoon, there were around 200 demonstrators at the protest

The protest was expected to move north toward the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Hundreds of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on Monday evening at Manhattan's Hunter College, just a mile away from the star-studded 2024 Met Gala

The message from the protestors was clear as they called for the war in Gaza to end

Students could be seen displaying signs from within Hunter College

Anti-Israel activists planned a 'Citywide Day of Rage for Gaza' at Hunter College in New York

NYPD officers put barricades in place outside Hunter College's entrance on East 68th Street and Lexington Avenue starting at 3pm on Monday

Demonstrators held a multitude of signs and Palestinian flags

The signs called for for ceasefire and called for the war in Gaza to stop

Some students displayed their solidarity for the marchers from inside

Gaza demonstrators have not shied away from disrupting other high-profile events in the city including the 2023 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and last year's Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting. 

The Met Gala sees some of the biggest names in film, fashion, music, sports, politics and social media, making it a lightning rod for protests. 

Nationwide campus protests began at Columbia in response to Israel's offensive in Gaza. 

Earlier in the day, the Ivy League school announced the cancelation of its university-wide commencement ceremony, scheduled for May 15. 

'Our students emphasized that these smaller-scale, school-based celebrations are most meaningful to them and their families,' the university said Monday. 'As a result, we will focus our resources on those school ceremonies and on keeping them safe, respectful, and running smoothly.' 

This comes days after the New York Police Department burst onto Columbia with riot gear to break up the tent encampment and re-take Hamilton Hall back from student occupiers.  

Over 100 people were arrested at the New York City university, according to CNN. Police said there were no injuries or people resisting arrest.