Reflecting on Mr Trump’s pre-demonstration speech, Mr Hizer questioned whether the president had meant to insight the crowd. “Was that his intention?” he said. “Were his words that easy to misconstrue?” He also cast doubt on claims that the protest was dominated by pro-Trump supporters exclusively from the far-right.
“There may have been alt-right supporters, there may have been QAnon, there may have been Antifa,” he added.
And in relation to the images of one man sporting a T-shirt with the wording “Camp Auschwitz” and another with the acronym “6MWE” — “Six Million Wasn’t Enough” — Mr Hizer suggested there was “every possibility it could be a false flag.”
A further staunch defence of Mr Trump’s record in office came from Yochy Davis, another prolific pro-Israel campaigner from Loughton, Essex.
“I watched him live and he never said anything like they are twisting he did,” said Mrs Davis of the president’s speech last Wednesday. “Most patriots are peaceful, unlike Black Lives Matter and Antifa.”
The activist said she was well aware of images of protesters dressed in clothing bearing antisemitic slogans. “There are antisemites in all sorts of groups. Doesn’t mean all his supporters are.”
Esther Chayes, a former US citizen, said her positive view of Mr Trump term in office was not tarnished by last week’s unrest: “I heard President Trump’s speech and there was nothing inciting in it. I still consider him to be a hero who was trying to do something for all of us.”
