Yesterday, Saturday, several capitals witnessed a wide wave of solidarity with the Palestinian people, coinciding with the commemoration of the “International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People,” which the world commemorates on November 29 of every year, and was approved by the United Nations in 1977.
The streets of major cities in France, Greece, Spain, Britain, and Morocco were transformed into squares where tens of thousands raised Palestinian flags and chanted slogans demanding an end to the Israeli war on Gaza and the West Bank, the application of international law, and an end to arms sales to Israel.
This widespread movement comes as Israel continues its daily violations despite the entry into force of the ceasefire agreement last October, and after a two-year war of extermination that left more than 70,000 Palestinian martyrs and widespread destruction whose cost was estimated at about 70 billion dollars.
The Israeli army and settlers also continue their attacks and escalation in the West Bank since the start of the genocidal war on Gaza, resulting in the death of more than 1,085 Palestinians, the injury of nearly 11,000, and the arrest of more than 21,000 others.
A “free and fair” solution
In Greece, the capital, Athens, witnessed a solidarity march in which hundreds of protesters participated in response to a call from civil society organizations.
The demonstrators gathered in a downtown park, raised Palestinian flags, and chanted slogans of “Freedom for Palestine.”
They also headed towards the Israeli embassy building, demanding that Fafaq stop the Israeli attacks and provide a “free and just” solution to the Palestinian people.
Just a “smoke screen”
In Paris, thousands participated in a huge demonstration, called for by 80 non-governmental organizations, and organizers estimated its number at about 50,000 people (8,400 people according to the police).
The demonstrators shouted slogans “Gaza, Gaza, Paris is with you” and “From Paris to Gaza, the resistance,” raising banners reading “Stop genocide.”
Prominent left-wing political figures participated in the march, including the leader of the Proud France party, Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
The head of the France-Palestine Solidarity Association, Anne Touillon, said that the ceasefire is “just a smokescreen” as long as Israel continues to violate it daily, calling for the imposition of international sanctions to stop the violations and accelerating settlement in the West Bank.
“All of humanity is watching helplessly, it’s complete impunity,” Tueyeon added, adding, “It’s very shocking that people see this and can’t do anything. The only thing we can do is mobilize.”
Participants in the march stressed that the scenes coming from the occupied West Bank and the Palestinian Gaza Strip, including incidents of field executions, require continued popular pressure “in the absence of any deterrent international sanctions.”
The Israeli army’s execution last Thursday of two unarmed Palestinian youth in Jenin – despite their surrender – sparked widespread anger and demands for an international investigation.
A video clip circulated by activists on social media showed that two unarmed young men surrendered before members of the Israeli army ordered them to return to where they came from. They were immediately killed and the place over their bodies was destroyed with a bulldozer.
40 Spanish cities stand in solidarity with Palestine
Spain witnessed a widespread wave of protests in more than 40 cities, including Madrid and Barcelona, during which demonstrators raised banners demanding an end to the genocide and a comprehensive ban on arms sales to Israel.
The protesters chanted slogans such as “Free Palestine” and “Killer Israel,” and a joint statement by civil organizations condemned “colonialism, occupation, and the apartheid regime” that Israel has practiced for 78 years.
The statement called on European governments to sever relations with Israel, impose international sanctions on it, and support legal processes before the International and International Criminal Court.
He denounced Israel’s failure to adhere to the ceasefire agreement declared in the Gaza Strip, and its systematic violation of it, in addition to its prevention of the entry of humanitarian aid.
In a simultaneous message, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that the Palestinian people “have never lost hope,” stressing his country’s support for the two-state solution as the only way to achieve sustainable peace.
Hunger and thirst “daily routine”
In London, tens of thousands took part in a huge march called by the “Coalition for Palestine” to protest the continuation of Israeli attacks despite the ceasefire, and the British government’s continued sale of weapons to Israel.
The protesters marched from Green Park towards Downing Street, calling for support for Gaza and denouncing the arrest of anti-Israel activists over the past weeks.
Representative of the Palestinian Forum in Britain, Fares Ali, said that the government “understands that its measures will stop the marches,” stressing that the demonstrators will continue the movement “as long as Israel kills innocent people daily in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and the West Bank.”
For her part, Labor Party MP Absana Begum warned that hunger and thirst had become a “daily routine” in Gaza, criticizing Israel’s decision to ban UNRWA, and stressing that thousands of Palestinians were threatened with death if aid was prevented.
Morocco
In Morocco, thousands of citizens participated in vigils and marches in a number of cities, including Rabat, Kenitra, Oujda and Taourirt, in commemoration of World Solidarity Day.
The demonstrators chanted slogans praising the steadfastness of the Palestinians and the resistance, raising pictures of journalists who were martyred in Gaza, and banners reading “Stop genocide and starvation” and “Permanent and unconditional support for the Palestinian resistance.”
Civil organizations also organized festivals to introduce the Palestinian issue, and seminars on the continuation of the occupation and ethnic cleansing.