The Post article planned to identify three top labour officials involved in an altercation with pro-Palestine protesters at the Democratic National Convention

Top brass at the Washington Post halted the publication of an article identifying key union leaders as responsible for an assault on party activists who protested on behalf of an Israeli arms embargo inside the Democratic National Convention, sources familiar with the matter said. The article was spiked last week.

The protest unfolded on the first night of the convention, shortly into President Joe Biden’s address. 

DNC delegates Nadia Ahmad, Liano Sharon, and Esam Boraey unfurled a banner reading “Stop Arming Israel,” which Ahmad had smuggled in under her dress. As the activists held up the banner, top officials from the Laborers’ International Union of North America or LiUNA, a powerful building trades union, began whacking at Ahmad with heavy poles as they attempted to rip the banner away.

Video of the thwacking went viral, and the Post assigned labour reporter Lauren Gurley to investigate. Gurley did not respond to a request for comment.

Sources Gurley interviewed, including Ahmad, told Drop Site News that the story was apparently complete and prepared for publication when it was abruptly killed, an extremely unusual move at such a late stage. The sources were not privy to internal editorial deliberations regarding the motivation for the spiking and The Washington Post did not respond to a request for comment.

The spiking of an article unfavourable to Democrats – a rare investigation that would cast pro-Palestine protesters in a sympathetic light – comes after Jeff Bezos, the owner of The Washington Post, intervened in the opposite direction, blocking the paper from endorsing Kamala Harris for president. 

Ahmad said that as the attack began, she wasn’t seriously concerned about injury, assuming the poles were made of cardboard and would be only an annoyance, not a major threat. She quickly realized the poles were made not just of cardboard, but reinforced by small wooden planks. In addition, the height from which she was attacked contributed to the velocity, leading to a concussion, she said.

Ahmad shared her medical records with the Post and, subsequently, with Drop Site News. The records indicate what’s described as a “mild” traumatic brain injury following a concussion, leading to dizziness and headaches, among other persistent symptoms.

The Post article, the sources said, would have identified Adam Lapino, a LiUNA international representative, as having taken part. It also would have named Scott Gustafson, an organising director at LiUNA, as having been involved, as well as Brent Booker, LiUNA’s general president, as having lunged for the banner.

Ahmad said she told the Post she has also submitted their names to the Chicago Police Department for potential charges and has otherwise made the accusation publicly. The banner was eventually successfully ripped away.

A spokesperson for LiUNA did not respond to requests for comment.

• A Tell report / By Ryan Grim