WASHINGTON (Bernama): Thousands of people held protests in solidarity with Palestine in front of Israeli embassies across the United States on Tuesday (May 18).
In Washington, DC, hundreds of Palestinian and American demonstrators gathered at the embassy, protesting Israeli attacks and the Biden Administration’s support for Tel Aviv.
Demonstrators carried Palestinian flags and banners that read: “Free Palestine”,”Palestine belongs to Palestinians”, and “Resist.”
In their protest of the Biden Administration, they also chanted: “No more money for Israeli crimes.”
Demonstrators also read aloud the names of babies killed in Gaza and displayed symbolic coffins draped in Palestinian flags.
Palestinian-American activist Mariam Abou-Ghazala and organisers of the demonstration said Palestinians were asking protesters to amplify their voices.
“I know for a fact, it’s not us who are going to free Palestine, ” she told Anadolu Agency.
“We’re the ones who are helping the Palestinians in Palestine to free Palestine.”
Martha Allen characterised the US backing of Israel as “heartbreaking”.
“We’ve been giving billions of dollars year after year after year, and it’s allowed the occupation to happen and the bombing and theft of homes and land, and we have to do everything we can to end the occupation,” she said.
In New York City, hundreds of protesters took to the streets and gathered near the Consulate General of Israel in Manhattan.
They chanted “Free, Free Palestine” and “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!” on the streets.
In Michigan, where US President Joe Biden was touring a motor company in Dearborn, protesters marched to denounce the US backing for Israel.
They carried Palestinian flags and signs that read: “Palestine will be free”,”End the Israeli occupation”, and “Palestinian lives matter”.
In Houston, Texas, hundreds of protesters gathered near the Consulate General of Israel, chanting “Free, Free, Palestine.”
Los Angeles, California, was another spot for a pro-Palestine rally, where a group demanded that the United States end aid to Israel.
Since last weekend, worldwide protests have been conducted to voice solidarity with Palestinians after Israel launched relentless airstrikes on Gaza on Monday.
At least 217 Palestinians have been killed, including 63 children and 36 women, and 1,500 others injured in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip since May 10, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
Recent tensions that started in East Jerusalem during the holy month of Ramadan spread to Gaza as a result of Israeli assaults on worshippers in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood.
Israel occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980 in a move never recognised by the international community. – Bernama
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