Dale took part in a protest on March 3 against Israeli aggression in Gaza. Unrest is growing in East Jerusalem. There were demonstrations on Sunday at the Ramallah and Bethlehem checkpoints. Green Palestinian flags are appearing here and there in the city, and there was a tire-burning on the main street of At Tur just down the hill from AVH. There are reports of a Palestinian teen having been shot near Ramallah by an Israeli settler, and skirmishes and shooting at the Bethlehem checkpoint.
On March 3 mounted Israeli policemen patrolled Sultan Suleiman Street at the Herod and Damascus Gates, and Salhadin St. was blocked by soldiers. Unrest continues to grow as the number of deaths among civilians continues to mount in Gaza. Tragically children have been among the almost 100 victims.
Israeli ground forces have withdrawn from northern Gaza without being able to stop the firing of Kassam and a few Katusha rockets into the Israeli towns of Sderot and Ashkelon. Of course, Hamas is claiming victory, but what price glory with all the Palestinian dead! The Hamas rockets are homemade and inaccurate but the can be deadly, and cause panic among the Israeli population. The Israeli response was, and is, egregiously disproportionate, but Israel had to respond to the single Israeli civilian death in Sderot this past week for internal political reasons.
Israeli claims that the bombardment will stop if the Hamas rockets stop. Why doesn’t Hamas stop and call Israel’s bluff in order to save innocent lives? But, even if the latter were to happen, Gaza is still a big concentration camp for Palestinians living in Gaza; Israel would still control exit and entry of people and goods, air space, and access to the Mediterranean. It wouldn’t take long for Palestinian frustration to reach a violent level again.
The March 3 demonstration took place on the steps leading from Sultan Suleiman St. down to the Damascus gate. The demonstrators were mostly Palestinian women with a few of us expats mixed in. They shouted slogans and sang songs. We held up signs in Arabic and English that criticized Israeli aggression. Armed Israeli soldiers and police were present on the periphery of the constantly growing crowd, and toward the end of the demonstration a reinforcement of soldiers arrived with tear-gas masks in hand, but thankfully the Israelis kept their distance. The demonstrators made their point and went home.
Canadians and Americans and Europeans need to get the message. The Palestinians are the victims here. Israel continues to flaunt international law and UN decisions as the land-grab and displacement of the Palestinian population continue. Only pressure from the West will make the Israelis “sit up and take notice”!
On March 3 mounted Israeli policemen patrolled Sultan Suleiman Street at the Herod and Damascus Gates, and Salhadin St. was blocked by soldiers. Unrest continues to grow as the number of deaths among civilians continues to mount in Gaza. Tragically children have been among the almost 100 victims.
Israeli ground forces have withdrawn from northern Gaza without being able to stop the firing of Kassam and a few Katusha rockets into the Israeli towns of Sderot and Ashkelon. Of course, Hamas is claiming victory, but what price glory with all the Palestinian dead! The Hamas rockets are homemade and inaccurate but the can be deadly, and cause panic among the Israeli population. The Israeli response was, and is, egregiously disproportionate, but Israel had to respond to the single Israeli civilian death in Sderot this past week for internal political reasons.
Israeli claims that the bombardment will stop if the Hamas rockets stop. Why doesn’t Hamas stop and call Israel’s bluff in order to save innocent lives? But, even if the latter were to happen, Gaza is still a big concentration camp for Palestinians living in Gaza; Israel would still control exit and entry of people and goods, air space, and access to the Mediterranean. It wouldn’t take long for Palestinian frustration to reach a violent level again.
The March 3 demonstration took place on the steps leading from Sultan Suleiman St. down to the Damascus gate. The demonstrators were mostly Palestinian women with a few of us expats mixed in. They shouted slogans and sang songs. We held up signs in Arabic and English that criticized Israeli aggression. Armed Israeli soldiers and police were present on the periphery of the constantly growing crowd, and toward the end of the demonstration a reinforcement of soldiers arrived with tear-gas masks in hand, but thankfully the Israelis kept their distance. The demonstrators made their point and went home.
Canadians and Americans and Europeans need to get the message. The Palestinians are the victims here. Israel continues to flaunt international law and UN decisions as the land-grab and displacement of the Palestinian population continue. Only pressure from the West will make the Israelis “sit up and take notice”!
No comments:
Post a Comment