***image4***While international diplomacy remains silent, complicit and paralyzed in front of the US backed Zionist crimes in Lebanon and Palestine, the people all over the globe have transformed this August in a month of continuous mass action.
In a powerful show of solidarity dozens of protests, sit-ins and demonstrations have filled the streets in over 24 countries.
See a summary of the popular mobilization below.
AUSTRALIA
Protesters use Hiroshima anniversary to call for Lebanon cease-fire
Anti-war protesters in Canberra have taken to the streets on the 61st anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima to rally against the Zionist onslaught on Lebanon.
Dr Rick Kuhn from the ‘Campaign to end Israeli Aggression’ called for an immediate cease-fire to halt the bombing of Lebanese villages and cities and commented: “Hiroshima Day commemorates one of the most barbarous acts in war, the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945; unfortunately there are still barbarous acts going on at the moment,” he said.
BAHRAIN
Bahrainis unite on August 5 to express support for resistance in Lebanon and Palestine
Hundreds of Bahreinis marched in Muharraq – a region with Sunni majority and the northernmost island of the Bahrain – chanting slogans against the US and Zionism as they waved the Lebanese, Palestinian, Iraqi and Bahraini flags. The protesters also carried pictures of various resistance leaders in a sign of unity of support for all resistance groups.
The oppositionâs National Democratic Action Society, Waad (âPromiseâ), central committee head Abdulrahman Al-Nuami said that Arab governments were no longer influential in determining the outcome or end of this ongoing conflict. He also criticized the GCC countries for not holding a joint meeting to come up with a unified position.
An across-the-board rejection of US plans for a ânew Middle Eastâ dominated the demonstration. An angry protester expressed the feelings of many. âThey claim that they want to bring democracy and justice to the region, but it is clear today that they are using Israel to usher in a new age of imperialism where they directly or indirectly occupy us,â she said.
National Pan Arab Democratic Gathering Vice Chairman Dr. Hassan Al-Aaali, meanwhile, called on the Nobel Prize committee to reconsider the peace prize it awarded to Shimon Peres in 1994. âHe was prime minister when the Qana massacre took place in 1996 and he is deputy prime minister now when the second Qana massacre took place and it is an insult to the Noble Prize to have murderers as champions of peace,â he said.
BELGIUM
Mass protest in Brussels against Israeli attacks
Ten thousand of people marched Sunday, 6th of August through Brussels to protest Israel’s military campaign against Lebanon, demanding an immediate halt to the fighting.
The march filled the streets of the city center for three hours. With the call of coordination Palestine-Lebanon Solidarity, the procession was opened by children while protesters waved Lebanese flags and chanted “Bush and Olmert are assassins” and “Lebanon burns and the world is watching.”
BRAZIL
Mobilization against complicity with Apartheid Israel continues
With Lebanese, Palestinian and Brazilian flags, shirts with photos of the bombings, shouts of ” State of Israel, Murderous State ” and banners of protest, over 10.000 people marched on Sunday Aug. 6 down Sao Paulo avenue to the Ibirapuera Park in Sao Paulo. The demonstrators that heeded the call of the Committee of Solidarity with the Arab People demanded an immediate cease-fire by the Israeli Occupation Forces, the withdrawal of the Brazilian ambassador from Israel that the government refuse to sign the treaty for free commerce between Mercosul and Israel. These calls have been supported by the presence of several MPs and federal representatives.
A second demontration marched through the city center of Porto Alegre. The protest, organized by the Arab-Palestinian-Brazilian society of Rio Grande do Sul, gathered protestors from all over the region of.
CANADA
In Montréal, 60 thousand march for Lebanon and Palestine
In one of the biggest rallies in Montreal, leaders of Quebec’s major political parties and unions, sixty community groups and well known Quebec artists led a huge demonstration and march through the streets of Montreal in solidarity with the people of Lebanon and Palestine.
The march was led by Gilles Duceppe leader of the Bloc québécois, André Boisclair leader of the Parti québécois, Liberal MP Denis Coderre, Bloc MP Maria Mouani, co-spokepersons Françoise David and Amir Khadir of Québec-Solidaire and Henri Massé President of the Fédération des travailleurs du Québec.
It is clear that Montrealers stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Lebanon and Palestine against the criminal agression of Israel and their accomplices, the US, Britain and Stephen Harper.
Protesters rally on Parliament Hill in Ottawa
About 1,000 people gathered on Parliament Hill on Saturday 5th of August to protest the Israeli aggression in Lebanon.
It was the latest in a series of rallies organized by Lebanese-Canadians in communities across the country. They have been calling on the federal government to abandon its support to the Occupation and US plans in the Middle East.
ENGLAND
100 000 in London stand up against their government!
As many as 100,000 people took to the streets around Parliament Square in protest against the Zionist regime’s war crimes in Lebanon and Gaza.
Protesters delivered children’s shoes to London home of the British premier to represent those whose lives have been lost in the 24-day conflict.
A letter bearing 40,000 signatures was handed in, calling on Blair to work towards ending the ‘bloodshed and destruction unfolding daily’. The letter called âon the government to change its position and join the vast majority of the world’s states, the UN secretary general and the Archbishop of Canterbury in calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Lebanon to save lives and prevent the destruction of that country,” said the letter.
Similar, but smaller, demonstrations took place in other cities up and down the country, including Manchester, Sheffield, Newcastle.
EGYPT
Protests in Cairo call for unity with Palestine and Lebanon
More than 2000 people marched in downtown Cairo on Saturday, 6th of August, chanting slogans against Apartheid Israel and vowing to support the struggle of the Palestinian and Lebanese people.
âWe will all be resistance in the Arabs’ struggle against Israel!â they shouted. Some set Israeli and U.S. flags on fire. The protest was organized by the Muslim Brotherhood and the Lawyers Syndicate, the national attorneys’ union which has recently emerged as a key player in the Opposition to Mubarakâs regime.
FRANCE
All over France: Thousands protest Israeli attacks
More than 1200 people demonstrated across the French cities of Paris, Lille, Strasbourg and Toulouse calling for an end to “the massacre of the Lebanese people”.
Some 400 people gathered in central Paris carrying banners reading “stop the massacres” and “a ceasefire in Lebanon” walking behind Lebanese and Israeli flags.
Another 500 demonstrated in the eastern city Strasbourg, with young demonstrators marching behind two coffins adorned with pictures of children injured in the Israeli onslaught of Lebanon.
In the northern city of Lille some 800 demonstrated to denounce “the international community’s silence” over the “massacre”. In the southern city of Toulouse 200 to 300 people gathered in the city centre.
“We want to state that the Lebanese people don’t want to die in the name of Israel’s and the United States’ vision of the Middle East,” said Andre Aoun, a spokesman for the Lebanese community in the city.
GHANA
Protests in Ghana call for and end to Israeli Aggression
The Lebanese community in Ghana has protested on Friday 4th of August against the inhuman treatment meted out to them by the Israelis. The about 60 Lebanese children in the protest sang their national anthem to show solidarity with their country. The president of the Lebanese community, Saed Fakhery expressed the community’s utmost gratitude to the Ghana government for standing firm at the Security Council to call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Lebanon, a stand he said has been rejected by some other members of the Council.
At a press conference at the Lebanese embassy on Wednesday the Lebanese Ambassador to Ghana, Mr. Jad Alhassan said the attacks by Israel on Lebanon are deliberate and tantamount to crimes against humanity.
INDIA
Children in Delhi protest against the bombing of Lebanon
Children sporting banners which read “Children for Peace and Peace for Children” along with social activists and people from all walks of life took out a peace march from Samta Sthal to Raj Ghat on Saturday.
INDONESIA
Militant Indonesians protest Zionist aggression on Lebanon and Palestine
Tens of thousands of Indonesians from dozens of political and mass organizations demonstrated in several cities all over the country on Sunday to protest ongoing crimes of the Occupation.
In the capital Jakarta, a large and enraged crowd marched from the city’s main traffic circle to the UN office before rallying outside the US embassy. During the protest, dubbed as the “action of one million believers,” demonstrators blocked the capital’s main roads, carrying pamphlets which read: “US and Israel the real terrorists.” Amidhan, chairman of the Indonesian Ulemas Council – Indonesia’s highest Muslim cleric organisation – called on Israel to be brought to the International Court of Justice and charged with violation of human rights.
Din Syamsuddin, chairman of Indonesia’s second-largest Islamic organisation Muhammadiyah, conveyed a letter to the UN representative, calling the world body to stop the Zionist offensive. He urged the Indonesian government to lobby countries around the world to help pressure the UN into halting the Israeli war crimes. Outside the US Embassy, speakers demanded Washington stop its double-standard policy and its support for Apartheid Israel. They also called on the Muslim world, in particular, to end their dependency on the US.
In the East Java capital of Surabaya, about 1,500 activists from the Indonesian Prosperous and Justice Party staged a lively protest in the cityâs streets. Protesters unfurled banners denouncing the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, while others set a number of Israeli and US flags on fire, chanting “US supports the Israeli terrorists.”
Similar protests in support of the struggle of the Lebanese and Palestinian people also took place in Yogyakarta of central Java and in the north Sumatra capital of Medan, where several hundred youths condemned the Israeli offensive against Lebanon and the Palestinians.
IRAQ
Iraqi Shiites protest against Israel in Baghdad
Thousands of Iraqi Shiites took to the streets on Friday, 4th of August, in Baghdad’s eastern part of Sadr City in protest of Israel’s offensive on Lebanese Hezbollah.
Thousands of Shiites wearing white robes gathered in Sadr City from Baghdad and other Shiite cities in response to a call from radical cleric Muqtada al- Sadr for opposition to the ongoing Israeli offensive on Lebanon. Iraqi security forces deployed at the neighborhood and policemen were patrolling, while dozens of mobile checkpoints were set up.
JORDAN
Jordanians protest Israeli assault on Lebanon and Palestine
Public figures and representatives of civil society institutions on Sunday staged a sit-in, organized by the Arab Bridge for Development and Human Rights Center (ABDHRC) before the UN office to protest Israel’s continued attack on Palestinian and Lebanese people. The protesters called upon the world community to stop the Israeli aggression which left thousands of innocent people dead and hundreds of thousands others homeless. Director of the center Amjad Shammut handed a petition to UN High Commissioner in Amman protesting Israel’s brutal attacks and calling for the protection of civilians in Lebanon and Palestine.
In a second protest, the clashes broke out when on Friday around 200 people gathered outside a mosque in west Amman. The protestors intended to march on the nearby Israeli embassy to denounce the ongoing Israeli onslaught on Lebanon. Two protesters were slightly injured and eight people detained.
MEXICO
Mexican activists stage sit-ins against Israeli aggression
In Mexico City the Mexican Initiative against War and Lebanese community united against the Israeli aggression staging sit-ins in front of the Holocausto Museum and the UN office on Thursday 3rd of August. Two days later another protest was staged in front of the American Embassy.
MOROCCO
Moroccans protest Zionist aggression against Lebanon
On Sunday 6th of August, thousands of Moroccans from all political strips, all walks of life and all age categories gathered in Casablanca’s Sahat Annasr (Triumph Square) to denounce the Israeli aggression against Lebanon and Palestine.
Hailing the Lebanese resistance, the demonstrators called for peace and cease-fire, waving Moroccan, Palestinian and Lebanese flags. âWe are here to support the Palestinian and Lebanese people and denounce the Zionist and American aggression against the two peoples, which is killing children, women and the elderly,â one of the demonstrators said.
The mass of people, marching for the just cause, fervently chanted against the Zionist aggression on both the Lebanese and Palestinian people as âa crime against humanityâ. The demonstrators also denounced the Arab leaders’ silence, calling on them to unite and face âthe Israeli-American aggressionâ.
NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand says NO to US-Zionist imperialism
On August 7th demonstrations have unfolded all across Aotearoa (New Zealand).
Around 300 people braved pouring rain to hold a lively march in the center of Auckland and rally to call for an end to US and Israeli imperialism in the Middle East. Demonstrators staged a die-in at the US consulate before burning US and Israeli flags.
In Wellington a few hundred protestors marched as part of a Wellington Palestine Group protest to demand that the government not allow Israel to reopen its embassy in New Zealand until such time as Israel has ceased hostilities, demolished the wall, withdrawn from occupied territory and fulfilled its international law obligations on Palestinian refugees.
In Dunedin an emergency demonstration against the war attracted 250-300 people who marched on the Octagon via Labour MP Pete Hodgson’s office and called on the government not to resume any military joint-training exercises with the USA.
PAKISTAN
Rallies condemn Israeli aggression on Gaza and Lebanon
On the appeal of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal Pakistan president Qazi Hussain Ahmad countrywide protest day was observed on Friday (Aug. 4) to express solidarity with the unwavering Lebanese and Palestinian people who are braving the US sponsored war brutalities of Israel and apathy of Arab and Muslim rulers. Reports from across the country speak of big protest demonstrations outside mosques and public spots which were attended by huge crowds.
The speakers condemned Israeli war on Lebanon and Gaza. They lauded steadfastness of innocent Palestinians and Lebanese against the unabated Israeli war. They also condemned the inefficacy of the OIC and condemned the rulers attending Putrajaya meeting which begged peace from Israel. Protesters chanted slogans against US and Israel and the government of Pervez Musharraf which is hinting at sending Pakistani troops in the UN international force for Lebanon to protect Israel.
A huge rally was held outside Madrassa Jamia Al- Aloom, on Masoom Shah Road after Friday prayers. The City of Multan, along with nationwide participation, poured out in thousands to protest the heinous and barbaric Israeli incursions in Lebanon and Palestine.
On the 9th of August, the Peopleâs Rights Movement joined forces with other progressive political organizations to hold a rally in Rawalpindi.
SCOTLAND
Scots say no to games with Israeli Apartheid
Scottish activists set out to stop the cricket games of Apartheid Israel in Glasgow.
The first of the games was effectively canceled on Thursday as organizers were eager to avoid public protests and announcements of the activists to engage in direct action to interrupt the games.
The second game was held amid huge police deployment, where protestors outnumbered the fans. Hundreds of protesters staged demonstrations at a match outside a sports ground in Scotland involving the cricket team of the Zionist regime. The organizers from the Stop the War Coalition said the match should not go ahead because of the invasion of Lebanon by Israel’s army.
Following games are held in a military base.
SOUTH AFRICA
âSanctions NOW against Israelâ – Thousands march in South Africa
20 000 people marched through the streets of Cape Town to Parliament on Saturday (Aug. 5) to demand diplomatic and trade sanctions against Israel.
The march – part of the ârolling mass actionsâ that started in August – was under the auspices of the newly formed Sanctions against Israel Coalition, unifying 46 grassroots and civil society organizations, trade unions and faith based networks. It includes, among others, the Palestine Solidarity Committee, the Anti-War Coalition, the Muslim Judicial Council, the Anti-Eviction Campaign and the Congress of South African Trade Unions.
The Coalition has gathered a wide ranging support, including the South African Trade Unions. The calls of the coalition range from consumer boycott to âworkers sanctionsâ and governmental sanctions. Transportation workers are asked not to handle any goods from or to the Occupation. The workers at De Beers â South Africaâs largest diamond producer â are called not to work any minerals to be shipped for cutting in Apartheid Israel. The campaigners point at the continuity the company has in supporting apartheid. Profits made of the oppressed and disenfranchised black labour during South Africaâs apartheid days have made the company a world leader in diamonds industry, now De Beers supports Israeli apartheid sending South African diamonds for cutting in the Zionist industries. Activists argue that setting up cutting facilities in South Africa to end this support to racism, occupation and expulsion would further create direly needed jobs for South African workers.
SPAIN
Rolling mass action in many cities across Spain
In recent week, protests against the Israeli attack on Palestine and Lebanon have been organized in dozens of towns and cities across Spain.
For three consecutive Thursdays thousands of Barcelona residents have shown their solidarity with the peoples of Lebanon and Palestine. Among the demands of the rallies were: Stop the massacre and the invasion of Lebanon and Palestine; Immediate and unconditional ceasefire; No more impunity for the state of Israel; No more passivity by our governments; Sanctions against the Israeli state.
Weekly protests are also being held in Madrid, Tarragona, Palma de Mallorca
TANZANIA
Thousands of Tanzanians Protest the Zionist attacks on Lebanon
Thousands of Tanzanians in the archipelago of Zanzibar and the country’s commercial capital demonstrated Friday against Apartheid Israel and the occupation in the Middle East.
Protesters marched through the streets of Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam, carrying placards with slogans in support of the Lebanese people, Palestinian and Lebanese flags.
Some of the placards in Dar es Salaam read, “Free Iraq, Palestine and Lebanon” and “Stop Israeli Terror.”
TURKEY
Hundreds Protest in Istanbul
On 4th of August, a demonstration was held against Israel and its attacks on Lebanon following Friday prayers at Istanbulâs Fatih Mosque.
Over 400 people gathered in the courtyard of Fatih Mosque and held a symbolic funeral ceremony for the civilians killed in Lebanon by Israeli attacks. The protestors waved Palestinian flags and distributed pictures of the people who have been killed in Lebanon.
“Down with the US and Israel, Murderer Israel, Collaborator AKP,” were some of the chants heard during the protest. Claiming that the USA and Israel were trying to change the borders of the Middle East, protestors burned Israeli flags as police maintained a heavy security presence around the mosque.
URUGUAY
Activists in Uruguay join global outrage
In Montevideo, dozens of Organizations have called for a march against the Zionist aggression on Lebanon and Palestine. On the 5th of August, protestors gathered in front of the University and marched to the Israeli embassy.
(for photos see: https://uruguay.indymedia.org/news/2006/08/53381.php)
US
***image3***
US gears up to mass protest in Washingto DC
On Saturday, August 5, some 3,000 protestors calling for an end to the U.S.-backed Israeli invasions of Gaza and Lebanon, as well as the U.S. occupation of Iraq, rallied and marched from Time Square to the General Electric building on 50th Street and 6th Ave. General Electric manufactures F-16 engines, used against the Lebanese, Palestinian and Iraqi populations. The rally was sponsored by the International Action Center, Al-Awda, Arab American Muslim Federation, Millions 4 Mumia, NYC Council Member Charles Barron and others.
In Chicago, US, some 3,000 people from the Muslim, Arab and progressive community took part in one of the city’s largest protests against Israeli aggression since the beginning of the Second Intifada.