Israel and Occupied Territories
All Out to Support the Palestinian Resistance and Right to Be!
Tel Aviv, anti-government protests, January 21, 2023.
Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories have been the scene of massive protests and strikes condemning the Netanyahu government's judicial reforms and the crimes the government and settlers are committing against the Palestinian people and their right to be. Wanton killings by the occupation forces, destruction and theft of Palestinian land and properties now has a green light and unprecedented crimes are being committed.
On January 14, thousands of people demonstrated in Tel Aviv to oppose the Netanyahu government's decision to expand illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and a proposed law to override Israel's Supreme Court decisions with a simple majority vote in the Israeli Knesset. Following that demonstration, Israel's new Security Minister ordered the police to remove Palestinian flags from public spaces, saying that waving the Palestinian flag is an act "supporting terrorism" while this member of Netanyahu's Cabinet has declared that he seeks to grant legal immunity to Israeli soldiers who shoot Palestinians.
On Saturday, January 21 it is estimated that some 150,000 people took part in the anti-Netanyahu demonstration in Tel Aviv alone. Tens of thousand more attended rallies held in the occupied city of al-Quds, outside the prime minister's residence, in the city of Haifa in the northern part of the occupied territories, in Beersheba, Herzliya and Modiin.
A week prior saw some 80,000 protesters at Tel Aviv's Habima Square.
Students in more than a dozen university and college campuses around the
country coordinated a one-hour "strike" action.
A Committee of University Heads of the Hebrew University of
Jerusalem, Tel Aviv University, the University of Haifa, Ben-Gurion
University of the Negev, Bar-Ilan University, the Weizmann Institute,
the Technion, Ariel University and the Open University expressed concern
that Netanyahu's judicial
reforms were so extreme they worried academics and students would leave
the country. They also called on the government to abandon its
direction, "to protect minority rights and the dignity of every human
being."
Demonstration January 14, 2023 against Israeli government
More than 130 corporations in Israel's high-tech sector also threatened strike action saying Netanyahu's agenda will undermine foreign investment in Israel.
The judicial reforms at issue will restrict the High Court capacity to strike down laws and government orders and give the Knesset the power to override any such court orders with a simple majority vote. The government will have unfettered authority over selection of judges. Ministers will no longer be required to seek counsel from the court as to "reasonableness" of legislation but will be able to appoint their own legal advisers.
Montreal Action in Solidarity with Palestinian People
On Sunday, January 22, close to 50 people, mostly youth, rallied for
an hour at Lafontaine Park in Montreal to denounce the latest Israeli
Zionist state's attack against the right to be of Palestinians living in
Israel, Gaza and the Occupied territories of the West Bank.
The Montreal event was part of the worldwide Raise Your Flag action.
As
participants in the car caravan exchanged greetings, the words of a
popular Palestinian revolutionary song playing in Arabic from a car's
speakers resonated in the park. To the words of "Red like our blood,
green like our land, black for the hard days, and white for our hearts,"
and more, people sang along while others listened on. Besides the
numerous Palestinian flags present, there were placards and flags with
slogans such as "The Canadian Government must Condemn Israeli Crimes",
"Resistance is a right", "Defend Palestinian Resistance" and "One
humanity, One Struggle."
For the next two hours the car caravan made its way through the streets
of Montreal with flags waving, heading towards the Israeli consulate.
Pedestrians took pictures and videos, some raising their fist in
support, with cars encountering the caravan also honking in support. The
convoy ended outside the federal government offices at the Guy-Favreau
Complex in downtown Montreal, where a picket was organized to denounce
the Trudeau government's silence in face of crimes committed by the
Israeli state against the Palestinian people.
(Photos: 972 Mag, Active Stills, TML)
This article was published in
Volume 53 Number 1 - January 2023
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2023/Articles/M530015.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca