Photo Review

December Actions in Support of Palestinian Resistance Do Not Falter

CANADA
Ottawa

Labour for Palestine held a March for Palestine and Lebanon on December 1. Among the hundreds of people who participated were contingents of workers from the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), and the Canadian Association of Professional Employees (CAPE), among others.

Labour for Palestine calls for:

- Support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement

- Divestment by union pension funds and by employers from Israeli companies and companies involved in the genocide;

- Actions to stop the flow of arms that sustain the genocide in Palestine and for the Canadian government to declare an arms embargo.

At the Human Rights Monument before the march a speaker denounced interference by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) which accuses those who call for an arms embargo, for a ceasefire and for donating funds to UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) of discriminating against the Jewish community. CIJA demands that unions not "exceed their mandate" which should, according to them, be restricted to negotiating better working conditions.

She reported that on September 27, a complaint against the Israeli government for blatant violations of the International Labour Organization's (ILO) Protection of Wages Convention was filed by ten global trade unions, representing 207 million workers in over 160 countries. The complaint highlights the obligations of Israeli authorities to redress and remedy a range of abuses, including unpaid wages and withheld benefits for more than 200,000 Palestinian workers from the West Bank and Gaza, formally or informally employed in Israel before October 7, 2023, who have experienced widespread wage theft due to the suspension of work permits and the unilateral termination of their contracts.

She also read a letter of solidarity from the Palestinian Postal Service Workers Union to striking Canadian postal workers which says, in part: "In your struggle for better pay, working conditions and secure pensions, you represent our common and shared aspirations for a better future for working people across the globe, a future free from class exploitation, national repression and all forms of discrimination. We witnessed your commitment to this vision when you supported the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions on Israel in 2008 and your steadfast position and support of our union and Palestinian workers over the years. Decades of occupation, apartheid, and genocide have taught us the importance of international solidarity. Today, we offer our unconditional support and solidarity to you and the thousands of CUPW workers on picket lines across Canada."

December 1

December 3

Several hundred people gathered at the Human Rights Monument on December 14, to demand an end to the ongoing genocide in Gaza and Canada's continued complicity. An Association of Palestinian Arab Canadians (APAC) spokesperson thanked people for having come out in spite of the cold, and in spite of police harassment in recent weeks and the targeting of youth, particularly leaders in the Palestinian community.

"The genocide has gone on for more than 435 days. Just this week, we have seen Israel undertake the largest aerial bombing operation in its history, launching almost 500 airstrikes in a matter of days in Syria. The Zionist regime took over large swaths of lands, expanding its already illegal occupation of Syria's Golan Heights. It also continues to bomb Lebanon where it has already killed 5,000 people, despite a ceasefire," he said.

He also spoke of the ongoing massacres in Gaza. "While the news cycle is focused on recent developments, let us not forget that the Israeli genocide has killed at least 44,875 Palestinians and injured over 106,000, and that it has not slowed down in the slightest. On Monday, the Israeli Occupation Forces bombed a school, killing and wounding Palestinians who had taken shelter there with their families. On Tuesday, they targeted a home near the Kamal Adwan Hospital. With limited resources, rescuers were able to pull 22 bodies from the rubble. On Wednesday night, they killed at least 36 Palestinians in three horrific massacres, one of which was at the Nuseirat refugee camp where an entire family was wiped from the civil registry. Despite all these crimes and the fact that they are being livestreamed for all to watch, our government continues to fail to impose a two-way arms embargo on the criminal State of Israel," he pointed out.

He said that reports such as the one by Amnesty International on its investigation into Israel's crimes in Gaza and its assessment that Israel is committing a genocide "strengthen our effort to hold Israel accountable and to isolate it as the pariah State that it is." A spokesperson for Amnesty International then spoke of the report herself before people took to the streets.

December 14

Montreal

December 8

December 14

December 15

Halifax

A rally for Palestine was held in Victoria Park on December 7, organized by Halifax for Palestine.

In spite of high winds and heavy rain, the rally was lively, with young Palestinians leading the chants and playing Palestinian music. This was the first rally organized by Halifax for Palestine.

Supporters of the struggle of the Palestinian people to end the genocide and end the occupation continue to organize militant actions in support of the Palestinian Resistance.

Toronto

On December 7 protesters braved the cold in downtown Toronto to condemn the ongoing bombing and ethnic cleansing taking place in Gaza and the overall genocide against the Palestinian people by the U.S./Zionist forces.

Speakers denounced the U.S./Zionist forces for deliberately targeting women and children and affirmed that the Resistance will prevail. They again condemned the Trudeau government for its silence in the face of this genocide while it funds and arms the Zionist war criminals.

On this occasion the anniversary of the First Intifada which lasted from 1987 to 1993 was also remembered and honoured. The spokesperson for the Palestinian youth who are organizing these ongoing actions made clear that the spirit of the Palestinian people and their resolve to liberate their occupied homeland cannot be defeated. They also pointed out that the support the Resistance is receiving from the Canadian people and people around the world sustains their resolve and steadfastness.

Participants were urged to continue to speak out and to mobilize for upcoming actions so that the U.S./Zionist forces and their enablers such as the Canadian state have nowhere to hide and are held to account.

A short march followed the speeches with participants chanting slogans accompanied by drumming, before the action ended where it began at Union Station.