New York, New York - Protesters in New York converged near the Met Gala on Monday in a rally against Israel's ongoing war on Gaza, leading to several arrests, police said.

Among the rallying points were the gates of Columbia University, which has been the center of spreading demonstrations, before protesters marched through Manhattan to fashion's biggest night – or at least as close as police would let them.

It was unclear how many arrests were made as stars walked the carpet and posed for photos, but AFP journalists confirmed several arrests while the New York Daily News reported the number was about a dozen, out of hundreds that gathered near the event.

Organizers on X posted a flier for an event dubbed as the "Citywide Day of Rage for Gaza."

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Monday's protest come in the context of demonstrations that have rocked campuses all over the nation, to which universities have responded by calling in police to arrest students and faculty staff in their thousands.

As the Met Gala unfolded on Monday night, Israel began bombing the city of Rafah – where some 1.2 million Palestinians are sheltering after months of relentless war – despite global opposition to an assault that the World Health Organization warned would cause a "bloodbath."