No. 6
April 11, 2025
All Out for National March for Palestine
Parliament Hill, Ottawa, April 12
Hold Canadian Ruling Elites to Account for Supporting Genocide of Palestinians
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
• Widespread Participation in Global
Strike for Gaza and
Support for Palestine
• Thousands Demonstrate in Washington, DC
• UN Security Council Paralyzed in Face of More U.S./Zionist War Crimes in Palestine
• 21 UN Special
Rapporteurs Urge Concrete
Actions
to End Israeli
Impunity
• UN Secretary-General Denounces Israel's Blockade
• UN Agencies Call for Global Action to Save People of Gaza
All Out for National March for Palestine
Parliament Hill, Ottawa, April 12
Hold Canadian Ruling Elites to Account for Supporting Genocide of Palestinians
A National March is being organized on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Saturday, April 12. The aim of the national action is to hold the Government of Canada and parties seeking to form the next government as well as party candidates accountable for their stands on Palestine by demanding a two-way arms embargo and an end to the genocide in Palestine.
Rallies
are also taking place in conjunction with the National March at
the
provincial legislatures in Alberta and BC, with buses coming
from
Calgary to Edmonton, and buses from Vancouver to Victoria.
The Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) points out:
"As the aggression on our people of Gaza continues to escalate daily, our government continues to support and aid the Zionist entity to pursue this ongoing genocide, whether that is through elected official speeches, the trade of arms and arms components to the Zionist occupation or the diplomatic support. As the federal elections near, we have a duty to our brothers and sisters in Palestine in keeping the Canadian elected officials accountable. This is why, on April 12, we will be marching on Parliament Hill with hundreds of organizations. This march seeks to bring together individuals and organizations to demand:
1. A Two-way Arms Embargo
2. An End to the Genocide in Gaza,
3. A Lift of the Siege on Gaza and to allow all aid to flow, and
4. An end to Canadian complicity."
PYM calls on everyone to endorse the National March as a powerful way to contribute to the movement for Palestinian national liberation. PYM encourages everyone to organize/join a contingent.
PYM also calls for help to support the funding of the march and sharing the donation link here.
For more information consult the official website of the
National March here.
Widespread Participation in Global Strike for Gaza and Support for Palestine
In a powerful display of continued global grassroots
mobilization aimed
at pressuring world leaders and governments to act against the
ongoing
genocide in the Gaza Strip, a global general strike took place
on April
7 in solidarity with Gaza and to protest against Israel's brutal
and
relentless
assault.
Arab countries have seen wide participation at the public level. Unions and institutions in Jordan, Kuwait, Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia announced their commitment to the strike.
In the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem, the strike took on a more official tone following decisions from the Ministry of Education to suspend schools and similar decisions suspending operations in various public institutions.
Activists in Jordan and Egypt stressed that the strike was limited to a one-day work stoppage, clarifying that it was not a call for civil disobedience or a protest against local governments.
The aim of the strike was to increase pressure on governments to take meaningful action to halt the Israeli escalation in Gaza. Events included work stoppages, the closure of commercial shops and demonstrations in front of embassies, with large participation from the Arab public and the international community.
Over the previous weekend, numerous pro-Palestine protests also took place calling for an immediate end to the genocide carried out by Israeli forces in Gaza since October 7, 2023.
The Follow-Up Committee of National and Islamic Forces in Gaza called for impactful and sustained action to pressure the Israeli occupation and its sponsors to stop the genocidal campaign against the people of Gaza.
In a statement, the forces issued "a call on behalf of every
slaughtered child, every grieving woman, and every oppressed
elder," urging the Arab and Islamic nations and all free people
around the world to rise up globally in support of the
Palestinian people in Gaza and to reject the U.S.-backed
massacres.
Several European cities also witnessed demonstrations in support of Palestine, condemning the atrocities in Gaza as among the worst forms of racism, and highlighting the deafening global silence surrounding Israel's crimes against civilians, women and children in the Strip. Many Palestine supporters have actively engaged with strike calls.
Actions were also held in the United States. In Canada, demonstrations, meetings and rallies have been held throughout the week culminating in National Actions being held on April 12.
West Bank, Palestine
Ramallah
Jenin
Tulkarm
Tubas
Salfit
Nablus
Hebron
CANADA
Ottawa
Montreal
Barrie
INTERNATIONAL
Baalbek,
Lebanon
Amman,
Jordan
Istanbul, Türkiye
Al-Arish,
Egypt
Protest at Rafah border
crossing
Tartus,
Syria
Tarim,
Yemen
Morocco
Algiers,
Algeria
Kasserine,
Tunisia
Libya
Johannesburg,
South Africa
Dhaka,
Bangladesh
Mauritania
(Palestinian Information Centre, April 7, 2025. Photos: Palestine Online, Quds, Shehab, @alaa.daraghme, Active Stills, @sd.4.palestine, @erikashaker, @the_algerian_globetrotter, @simcoecounty4palestine, AA, Al Mayadeen, Islamic Forum of Africa, Shorif Mahmud )
Thousands Demonstrate in Washington, DC
In Washington DC thousands rallied in the heart of the U.S. capital on April 5 to oppose Trump administration attacks on free speech and student activism, and demand an end to Israel's relentless genocidal onslaught against Gaza. Students, organizers, journalists, artists, and workers came to Washington, DC from across the country to call for the release of pro-Palestine students such as Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk from ICE detention and to declare their fearlessness in the face of Trump's attacks.
The march was endorsed by over 200 organizations including the Palestine Youth Movement, the ANSWER Coalition, the People's Forum, Democratic Socialists of America, Jewish Voice for Peace, U.S. Palestinian Community Network, American Muslims for Palestine, and the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights.
The crowd of thousands channeled their energy into a march through Washington, DC, stopping at the headquarters of Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE). "We are here to say that the fight for Palestine and the struggle for Palestinian liberation is united with the struggle for immigrant rights," said Layan Fuleihan, Education Director at the People's Forum and lead organizer with the Shut It Down For Palestine movement, addressing the crowd which had stopped outside of the ICE building. "We are here to send a clear message to Trump, to Rubio, to everyone inside this building, that when they attack one, and when they attack two, they have to face all of us. We are the majority."
Grant Miner, the president of Columbia's graduate student union, UAW Local 2710, used part of his speech to call out leaders in the Democratic Party for what he expressed was insufficient support for the cause of the student movement and the cause of Palestine. But workers and students should not rely on Democratic Party politicians, stated Miner. "If that's one thing that's been abundantly clear over the past month, it's that nobody, especially not these politicians, is coming to save us, but the good news is [that] we don't need anybody to save us," Miner said, addressing the crowd. "All we need is for the people to stand together and get organized and fight back! They can't run the country without us, but we sure as hell can run the country without them."
(Photos: Peoples Forum NY, BT News, PYM)
UN Security Council Paralyzed in Face of More U.S./Zionist War Crimes in Palestine
Rescue workers recover
remains of executed aid workers
The massacre by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) of 15 aid workers in Gaza on March 23, now proven to be a deliberate and unjustified mass execution, was brought before the UN Security Council on April 3 by Volker Türk, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
"I am appalled by the recent killing of 15 medical personnel and humanitarian aid workers, which raise further concerns over the commission of war crimes by the Israeli military," said Türk. He also pointed out that the temporary relief granted by the ceasefire "has been shattered."
Even before Israel definitively smashed the Ceasefire Agreement on March 17, it had carried out various military operations breaching the ceasefire. Between March 17 and April 10 alone, when the Israeli military restarted operations in Gaza, the Ministry of Health in Gaza informs that the IOF had killed 1,522 Palestinians, including more than 300 children, and wounded 3,834. The total figures since Israel began its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023 are 50,886 killed and 115,875 wounded.
Bombardments of residential buildings, tents, hospitals and schools continue, including places where Palestinians have been ordered to move.
Decrying the Israeli military's complete blockade on vital aid and supplies to Gaza, Türk underscored: "The blockade and siege imposed on Gaza amount to collective punishment and may also amount to the use of starvation as a method of war." He also noted that, as of April 2, the World Food Programme (WFP) had to shut its 25 bakeries in Gaza due to a severe lack of fuel and flour -- leaving many without access to bread. Reuters reported on April 10 that after six weeks of Israel's blockade of Gaza, the WFP will soon no longer be able to even provide distribution of food parcels at reduced rations.
In addition to the documented crimes already taking place, Türk said that inflammatory rhetoric by senior Israeli officials regarding seizing, dividing and controlling territory "raises grave concerns about the commission of international crimes."
Regarding the West Bank, Türk called the situation "extremely alarming." He said that the announcement by Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz that displaced residents must not return to their homes for a year "raises serious concerns about long-term mass displacement."
He went on to say that the collective punishment of the Palestinian people cannot be justified, no matter what took place on October 7, 2023, and urged immediate restoration of the ceasefire in Gaza. "There is a high and increasing risk that atrocity crimes are being committed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory," he warned.
The representative of Algeria on the Security Council noted that earlier on April 3, Israeli air strikes targeted a school sheltering displaced people, killing dozens of civilians, and that the day before, the bombing of a United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) clinic killed 22 others. He emphasized the result if the Council does not act: "The world -- our constituency -- will no longer respect neither the Council nor its deliberations."
The representative of Pakistan, recalling the Council's many meetings on this issue, observed that the Palestinian people "are left questioning whether this body will take meaningful steps, or merely lament their suffering."
"Our failure not only undermines this institution, but also erodes the international order based on the UN Charter," he added.
Sierra Leone's representative underscored that "respect for international law is not optional." He stressed that settler violence is part of a broader crisis that must be addressed immediately.
The representative of Slovenia said, "We cannot choose to believe these were simply mistakes." "Intentionally directing attacks against personnel involved in a humanitarian-assistance mission is a war crime and must be prosecuted accordingly," he added.
Regarding claims by the IOF that its deliberate massacre of humanitarian workers was a "mistake," China's representative pointed out that their bodies were later found in a mass grave, close to damaged vehicles with humanitarian markings. He called for accountability and opposed the use of humanitarian aid as a bargaining chip.
Denmark's representative stressed: "Humanitarian assistance must never be used as a political tool." She also expressed support for an independent investigation into the killing of Red Crescent staff, observing that for the third time "within less than a week" the Council has debated the protection of humanitarian personnel.
The representative of the Russian Federation noted that the ambulances involved in that incident were all clearly marked. He also remarked on the April 2 Israeli strike on an UNRWA medical centre serving as a shelter for more than 700 people. "Hope for the situation changing for the better is almost non-existent," he said.
Interventions of those complicit with Israel's genocide, including several Permanent Members of the Security Council, equated the illegal occupation and the legal right to resist occupation.
The representative of France, Council President for April, spoke in his national capacity to urge the release of hostages, but did not hold Israel to account for its repeated breeches of the ceasefire.
The U.S. representative leveled various spurious accusations against the Palestinian Resistance, including that its demand that Israel stick to the ceasefire to which the latter had agreed is what led to Israel's renewed assault on Gaza.
After Council members had their say, the Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine took the floor to emphasize: "Enough occupation, enough wars -- we need a ceasefire now."
Israel not only completely blocks humanitarian aid but also ensures that civilians are denied all assistance, he said. Pointing to the recent execution of Red Crescent workers, bombing of an UNRWA clinic and strike against a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City, he stated that Israel wants to make clear that "the only alternative to death is displacement out of Gaza." Israel's objective, he stressed, is not releasing the hostages -- it is "stealing Palestinian land."
Israel's representative, with utter disregard for the truth, said that his country is the victim and is always persecuted when it defends itself. He went on to give Israel's self-serving explanation as to why its killing of humanitarian workers was totally justified.
Council rules permit him to speak in this way.
The last main intervention was from the representative of Libya, speaking for the Arab Group. He said that the crisis has reached its peak. Making statements and "selecting words" is of no use, he said. The massacre of Red Crescent aid workers was committed deliberately, and then their bodies were thrown into a mass grave to cover up the crime.
Stressing that the occupying power is committing genocide, he underlined the need for a ceasefire and the subsequent delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Further, he warned Council members against becoming "accomplices" in the suffering of the Palestinian people.
(With files from UN Security Council, CNN, Reuters. Photo: UN News)
21 UN Special Rapporteurs Urge Concrete Actions to End Israeli Impunity
Aerial view of Rafah,
April 5, 2025
On April 3 21 UN Special Rapporteurs issued a joint statement calling on UN Member States to do more to ensure that Israel is held accountable for its breaches of international law and to uphold decisions by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). Specifically the statement calls on states to join the Hague Group, established on January 31, 2025.[1][2] According to the statement, joining The Hague Group would "avert the tangible risk of erosion of the international legal system, the rule of law and the protection of all human rights. That system is being endangered by the general inaction of the international community in the face of the most egregious violations of international law perpetrated by the State of Israel."
"At this historical crossroads, protecting the international human rights system requires decisive, principled and concerted action," the experts said. "If States fail to act, the multilateral system will be set back decades."
"Since the creation of the State of Israel, violations of international law and lack of accountability have been the norm, rather than the exception," the experts added. "Israel's assault against the Palestinian people, the United Nations and basic tenets of international law, undermines the foundations of the multilateral order."
The group welcomed the July 2024 Advisory Opinion of the ICJ which clarified, once and for all, "that the inalienable right to self-determination of the Palestinian people should be realized through total and unconditional withdrawal of Israel's presence from the occupied territories, not subject to negotiation.
"It is regrettable that eight months after the ICJ Advisory Opinion, most States continue to ignore their obligations – this may render them complicit with internationally wrongful acts as the court concluded," the experts said.
They also welcomed efforts by some States since October 2023 to protect human rights and preserve multilateralism, most notably the case filed by South Africa and Nicaragua at the ICJ with third States joining proceedings.
The experts concluded their statement by strongly encouraging other States "to join The Hague Group or articulate similar initiatives and operationalize these actions, if they no longer want to represent the legal, political and moral shield of Israeli atrocities."
Notes
1. The members of The Hague Group have committed to implementing the ICJ provisional measures in the case of South Africa v. Israel and to complying with the ICC arrest warrants of November 2024. They have also pledged to abide by the ICJ Advisory Opinion of July 2024 by particularly preventing the transfer of arms, munitions and related goods to Israel. The Hague Group was founded by Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, Senegal and South Africa.
2. For the UN Special Rapporteurs who signed the statement click here.
(UN Human Rights Comission. Photo: Palestine Online)
UN Secretary-General Denounces Israel's Blockade
UN Secretary-General António Guterres on April 8 condemned Israel for obstructing humanitarian aid to Gaza and called for immediate action to protect civilians. Addressing journalists, the UN chief said that more than a month passed "without a drop of aid into Gaza. No food. No fuel. No medicine. No commercial supplies."
News agencies inform that Israel began to block aid at the beginning of March, in violation of the ceasefire conditions it had agreed to, to block phase two of the ceasefire from being implemented and to force the Palestinian Resistance into simply releasing all Israeli captives without any guarantees for the people of Gaza.
Citing the Geneva Conventions, Guterres stressed that Israel, as the occupying power, has the responsibility to provide food and medical supplies to the people of Gaza. "The Israeli authorities' newly proposed 'authorization mechanisms' for aid delivery risk further controlling and callously limiting aid down to the last calorie and grain of flour," Guterres told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.
Guterres demanded guarantees for the unhindered entry of aid to the coastal territory. He also raised the alarm about the situation in the West Bank, calling the current path of stepped up displacement of Palestinians and land seizures for illegal Israeli settlements "a dead end -- totally intolerable in the eyes of international law and history."
(UN, Al Mayadeen)
UN Agencies Call for
Global Action to
Save People of Gaza
Aid trucks lined up,
prevented from entering Gaza
On April 7, the heads of six UN Agencies issued a joint statement on the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The agencies are the Office for Project Services (UNOPS), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the World Food Programme (WFP), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). They warned of severe aid shortages and hunger since Israel resumed its all-out aggression on March 18. "For over a month, no commercial or humanitarian supplies have entered Gaza," the agency heads said in a press statement. "More than 2.1 million people are trapped, bombed and starved again, while, at crossing points, food, medicine, fuel and shelter supplies are piling up, and vital equipment is stuck," they added.
The agencies reported that at least 1,000 children were killed or injured during the first week after the Israeli genocide resumed, which is the highest one-week child death toll in the past year. The statement points out, "No one is safe. At least 408 humanitarian workers, including over 280 from UNRWA, have been killed since October 2023."
"With the tightened Israeli blockade on Gaza now in its second month, we appeal to world leaders to act – firmly, urgently and decisively – to ensure the basic principles of international humanitarian law are upheld," the agencies write.
Regarding the killing of humanitarian workers, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) called for an independent international inquiry into the "deliberate killing" of 15 paramedics and emergency humanitarian personnel in Gaza by Israeli Occupation Forces on March 23. Speaking at a press conference in Ramallah on April 7, PRCS President Younis al-Khatib demanded that Israel be punished for its crimes and said merely speaking of international law and the Geneva Conventions is not sufficient. Khatib said an independent international investigation commission is needed "to establish the facts and hold those responsible accountable."
(UN, Al Mayadeen. Photo: Quds)
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