World-Wide Protests Condemn
the Annexation of Palestinian Territory
Peoples of the World Stand as One with the Palestinian People
The call of the Palestinian resistance for Days
of Rage protests against the annexation of Palestinian territories has
been taken up worldwide in the days and weeks leading up to and
following the July 1 official "launch" announced by Israel.
A Palestinian land protest in Asirah Alshamaliah Village, July 3, 2020.
Israeli settlers, escorted and protected by soldiers, erected an
illegal colonial outpost on the Village lands a
few days prior.
According to Samidoun, the Palestinian Prisoner
Solidarity Network, protests took place on July 1 in occupied
Palestine; in San Francisco, San Diego, Rancho Cucamonga and Claremont,
California; Chicago, Illinois; Salt Lake City, Utah; Albuquerque, New
Mexico; Portland, Oregon; Boston, Massachusetts; Seattle, Washington;
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Toledo and Columbus, Ohio; Halifax
and St. Catharines, Canada; San Jose, Costa Rica; Oldham and Bedford,
England; Toulouse and Saint-Denis, France; Amsterdam and The Hague,
Netherlands; Frankfurt and Berlin, Germany; Madrid, Granada, Valencia,
Valladolid, Sevilla and Bilbao, Spain; Athens, Greece; Istanbul,
Turkey; Johannesburg, South Africa; and Seoul, Korea.
Actions continued after July 1 in Berlin, Germany;
Amman, Jordan; Copenhagen, Denmark; Toronto, Mississauga and Hamilton,
Canada; in many cities across Ireland and the United Kingdom; Auckland,
New Zealand; Detroit and Cleveland, USA; Lisbon, Portugal; and other
places.
Brooklyn, New York saw one of the largest Day of
Rage actions outside Gaza. Thousands of people poured into the streets
shouting slogans and marching for four hours. Organized by the
NY4Palestine Coalition, which includes Samidoun, it specifically tied
the struggle of the Palestinians for their rights with the struggle of
Black Americans against state-organized racist police violence.
Pre-recorded remarks by U.S. political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal
signaled the start of the march.
Day of Rage in Brooklyn, New York, July 1, 2020.
In Los Angeles, hundreds of cars with signs,
banners and Palestinian flags drove from the Federal Building to the
Israeli Consulate where a boisterous rally was held.
In Baltimore, protestors condemned U.S. support
for the Zionist state of Israel and demanded an end to the Israeli
occupation of Palestine. They also demanded an end to the training of
Baltimore police by Israeli Defense Forces.
 Samidoun reported
that nearly 300 people rallied in Toulouse, France, on July 1. For
almost two hours, the demonstrators chanted and shouted slogans: "Palestine vivra! Palestine
vaincra!" (Palestine will live, Palestine will win) and
"Boycott Israel!"
Amsterdam was also home to an action on July 1,
where more than 100 people protested at the U.S. consulate against the
continued colonization of Palestine. The protest was organized by
Samidoun Nederland and supported by a number of different
organizations, including BDS Netherlands and the PGNL, the Palestinian
Community of the Netherlands.
In Berlin, youth led a demonstration
on July 3 outside the Bundestag (the German parliament). They
filled the area in front of the Bundestag with Palestinian flags and
with calls for justice and liberation, making it clear that no amount
of repression by the German state, will prevent the voice of Palestine
from being heard.
Samidoun reports that tens of thousands of people
in many different cities around the world took to the streets in
response to the call for Days of Rage against Israeli annexation, from
Palestine to the USA, from the Philippines to Turkey. It is clear that
the ongoing colonization of Palestine will be met with increasing
resistance.
Canada
Toronto, July 4, 2020.
Across Canada, actions continue to be held as
part of the international Days of Rage condemnation of U.S. / Israeli
Zionist plans to annex huge swaths of the occupied Palestinian
territories. Upwards of 300,000 Palestinians are under threat of
further displacement as a result of the proposed annexation. Last week TML
Weekly reported on an action held in Halifax on July 1.
Actions were also held recently in Montreal, Toronto, St. Catharines
and elsewhere. The protests have continued and there have been further
actions in Toronto, Mississauga and Hamilton and one announced for
Vancouver on July 12, and another in Windsor, July 18.
Toronto
 
The action in Toronto on July 4 was hosted by the
Palestinian Youth Movement, Arab Palestine Association of Ontario,
Al-Awda: The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, and Campuses for
Palestine (C4P). The spirit of resistance was uplifting.
 One participant
enthusiastically wrote to TML Weekly that it
looked as if over 1,000 people joined in at one time or another over
the course of the three-hour protest. There was a constant presence of
200-250 people present braving the heat, with many passersby stopping
and joining in for shorter periods before going on their way.
It seemed like more than 100 different
organizations participated in this act of solidarity and resistance.
"They included all manner of communities suffering from all manner of
colonialism, racism, sexism, discrimination. Speakers included Black,
Indigenous, non-Zionist Jews -- practically every marginalized,
discriminated-against community you could think of."
Mississauga
 
A vigorous, lively, "Protest for Palestine" was
held in Mississauga on July 4 at Celebration Square, organized by Sauga
for Palestine. The organizers, primarily students, wanted their voices
heard in support of Palestine and to make a statement against Israel
and its illegal practices. "Mississauga -- we need to stand together
against injustice!" they wrote. "Israel plans to destroy/annex
Palestinian homes in the West Bank and large swaths of the Jordan
Valley, consuming the remaining areas under Palestinian control and
causing even more Palestinians to become refugees. This is the largest
stage of the ongoing Nakba
and the most aggressive plan to steal Palestinian land and expand
illegal Israeli settlements. As Canadians, we need to condemn this
illegal annexation and condemn Trudeau's support of Israel, as well as
show our support for Palestine and demand justice for its people.
Palestinian or not, this is a human rights issue, and we all need to
come together to stand against it."
 
Hamilton
Hamilton's Day of Rage action was held on July 5
at Hamilton City Hall. Organizers said they called this rally in an
effort to pressure the Canadian government to condemn Israel's
impending annexation of parts of the West Bank. They said they are also
trying to pressure the Canadian government to take concrete actions --
such as imposing sanctions against Israel, and suspending the
Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement -- if Israel continues its move
towards annexation.
They called for an end to Israeli apartheid
policies, including the Jewish-only settlement created on Palestinian
lands, contrary to international law. They called for the West Bank
apartheid wall to be dismantled. They also voiced their strong support
for the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island against racist
state-organized police violence and for an end to the "deadly exchange
and training partnerships" between Israeli Defense Forces and police
departments in North America.
The action was endorsed by the Jewish Liberation
Theology Institute, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights Queen's,
Palestine House Toronto, Independent Jewish Voices Hamilton, and
Students Against Israeli Apartheid at York University.
Vancouver
Vancouver will host a Day of Rage Against
Annexation on July 12, from 3:00 to 5:00 pm at the Vancouver Art
Gallery, 750 Hornby Street. One and all are called upon to join in. The
Vancouver action is organized by the University of British Columbia
Arab Students Association and Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights
in collaboration with Vancouver Allies and Independent Jewish Voices.
Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network is an endorser of the
event.
"Join us" organizers write "for a standing protest
against the illegitimate annexation of parts of the West Bank and
Jordan Valley that will cause further instability and hardships for
Palestinians, as well as undermine chances of the establishment of an
independent Palestinian state."
Windsor
The University of Windsor Palestinian Solidarity
Group is hosting a Day of Rage to Stop the Annexation of Palestine on
July 18 at 3:30 pm at the corner of Ouellette and Riverside Drive in
downtown Windsor. "We will NOT stay silent as Israel annexes
Palestinian land! Join the Palestinian Solidarity Group as we march for
justice. Make your voices heard, and demand action from our government.
Stop apartheid, stop these crimes against humanity," write the
organizers.
Actions
Continue Internationally
Washington, DC
Tallahassee, Florida
  
Las Vegas, Nevada
 
Free Derry, Ireland
 
Dublin, Ireland
Kildare, Ireland
Ennis, Ireland
London, England
East London, England; Sheffield,
England
 
Manchester, England
Liverpool, England
Bristol, England
South Wales
Gothenburg, Sweden
Copenhagen, Denmark
 
Vienna, Austria
 
Lisbon, Portugal
Montpellier, France
 
Gijon, Spain
This article was published in
Volume 50 Number 25 - July 11, 2020
Article Link:
World-Wide Protests Condemn
the Annexation of Palestinian Territory: Peoples of the World Stand as One with the Palestinian People
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
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