Palestinians formed a human chain in the Gaza Strip yesterday in protest at a crushing Israeli blockade, with Israeli forces on alert for any rush on the border.
Under a light late-morning rain, thousands of schoolchildren were joined by adults along Salaheddin Road, the main highway traversing the center of the impoverished coastal strip.
Slogans such as "The Siege of Gaza Will Only Strengthen Us," "The World Has Condemned Gaza to Death" and "Save Gaza" were among banners brandished by demonstrators, who gathered peacefully.
As the demonstrators dispersed a few hours later, a small group of youths set fire to a tire a few dozen meters from the Israeli army position at the Erez crossing and began throwing stones.
The incident drew fire from Israeli soldiers, and two of the youths were wounded, medical sources said.
At the same time, the army said it had arrested "around 50" Palestinians who had approached the crossing.
The Popular Committee Against the Siege, a politically independent group headed by Jamal al-Khudari, a member of parliament (MP) with close links to Hamas, had called for the demonstration against the months-long siege.
"This is a peaceful and civilized act to let the people express their rejection of the siege and of collective punishment," Khudari told journalists. "We are raising a cry to the world for it to act."
Hamas backed the protest.
"This is a message addressed to the international community and to the Israeli occupation, and I hope it will seize the opportunity to lift the siege," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhum said.
Hamas MP Ismail al-Ashqar warned that if this does not happen "there will be a hurricane that will flood the whole region."
Israel has sealed the territory to all but vital humanitarian supplies since Hamas seized power last June, in a bid to pressure the group to halt rocket and mortar attacks on southern Israel by its own militants and others.
Huzeifa al-Masri, 14, said he and his classmates from the northern border town of Beit Hanun attended the protest because "there is hardly any food, and the Israeli incursions are frequent. We want to live in security like the rest of the world."
Most of Gaza's 1.5 million population depends on foreign aid.
Israel had warned Hamas it would defend its territory if there was any trouble.
"Israel will not intervene in demonstrations inside the Gaza Strip but it will ensure the defense of its territory and prevent any violation of its sovereign borders," said a joint statement from Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
Their statement accused Hamas of "orchestrating a premeditated effort to put civilians on the front line.
Auschwitz survivor Eva Schloss, the stepsister of teenage diarist Anne Frank and a tireless educator about the horrors of the Holocaust, has died. She was 96. The Anne Frank Trust UK, of which Schloss was honorary president, said she died on Saturday in London, where she lived. Britain’s King Charles III said he was “privileged and proud” to have known Schloss, who cofounded the charitable trust to help young people challenge prejudice. “The horrors that she endured as a young woman are impossible to comprehend and yet she devoted the rest of her life to overcoming hatred and prejudice, promoting kindness, courage, understanding
Tens of thousands of Filipino Catholics yesterday twirled white cloths and chanted “Viva, viva,” as a centuries-old statue of Jesus Christ was paraded through the streets of Manila in the nation’s biggest annual religious event. The day-long procession began before dawn, with barefoot volunteers pulling the heavy carriage through narrow streets where the devout waited in hopes of touching the icon, believed to hold miraculous powers. Thousands of police were deployed to manage crowds that officials believe could number in the millions by the time the statue reaches its home in central Manila’s Quiapo church around midnight. More than 800 people had sought
DENIAL: Pyongyang said a South Korean drone filmed unspecified areas in a North Korean border town, but Seoul said it did not operate drones on the dates it cited North Korea’s military accused South Korea of flying drones across the border between the nations this week, yesterday warning that the South would face consequences for its “unpardonable hysteria.” Seoul quickly denied the accusation, but the development is likely to further dim prospects for its efforts to restore ties with Pyongyang. North Korean forces used special electronic warfare assets on Sunday to bring down a South Korean drone flying over North Korea’s border town. The drone was equipped with two cameras that filmed unspecified areas, the General Staff of the North Korean People’s Army said in a statement. South Korea infiltrated another drone
Cambodia’s government on Wednesday said that it had arrested and extradited to China a tycoon who has been accused of running a huge online scam operation. The Cambodian Ministry of the Interior said that Prince Holding Group chairman Chen Zhi (陳志) and two other Chinese citizens were arrested and extradited on Tuesday at the request of Chinese authorities. Chen formerly had dual nationality, but his Cambodian citizenship was revoked last month, the ministry said. US prosecutors in October last year brought conspiracy charges against Chen, alleging that he had been the mastermind behind a multinational cyberfraud network, used his other businesses to launder
RSS