From the Liveblog of
Saturday, November 2, 2024
Some 300 left-wing activists protest ‘genocide’ in Gaza at Tel Aviv’s Habima Square
Under heavy police guard, some 300 people gather on Tel Aviv’s Habima Square to protest the “genocide” in Gaza.
The protest is organized by the Peace Partnership, a coalition of left-wing groups that came together after the war began. At the end of the event, the protesters march to Begin Street to join the weekly anti-government, pro-hostage deal rally.
The protesters on Habima Square appear to coalesce in two separate, roughly equal circles, with one dominated by the binational socialist collective Standing Together and the other drawing smaller left-wing groups.
At the latter circle, there are no speeches. Activists chant slogans urging troops to “refuse to massacre,” and hoist banners with slogans such as “stop the genocide in Gaza” and “Zionism is nerdy.”
On Tel Aviv's Habima Square, far-left protesters urge IDF troops to decline to serve in Israel's 'massacre' in Gaza:
'Soldier! Attention! Refuse to massacre!'
'Pilots! Stop murdering children!' pic.twitter.com/V8xXdBOCox
— Noam Lehmann (@noamlehmann) November 2, 2024
Israel has strongly denied that it has committed any genocidal acts against Palestinians in Gaza, asserting in oral hearings and written submissions to the International Court of Justice in The Hague that statements by Israeli elected officials cited as evidence of genocidal intent were either taken out of context, mendaciously interpreted, or not reflective of government policy.
Standing Together’s circle features speeches by Alon-Lee Green and Roula Daoud, the movement’s co-leaders, and MK Ofer Cassif of the Israeli-Palestinian communist party Hadash.
Daoud urges the audience not to wait for the international community to intervene against the war.
“Only we can save ourselves from the fascist government,” she says. “We’re here, and we’re staying here: Jews, Arabs, Israelis, Palestinians.”
Green rails against the fighting, saying it is immoral and counterproductive.
“Killing children is a war crime. Starvation is a war crime. Destruction of cities is a war crime,” he says. “All of this is happening in the name of the settlements,” says Green, “the Israeli Ku Klux Klan.” He assails Israel’s media and Zionist left for “not telling us what is happening in Gaza.”
Cassif echoes the theme, saying that “what we are seeing now in Gaza is nothing less than a genocide” which the “conscripted” media is covering up.
“We’re learning in real time how” the Holocaust could have happened and nobody would speak up, says Cassif.
Referring to an ongoing probe, he says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has purposely leaked fake intelligence in an effort to thwart a hostage deal that would end the war.
After Cassif’s speech, a man yells at the protesters, calling them “faggots.”
“Let’s see you in Gaza!” he shouts.
Border Police officers securing the perimeter approach him, and he backs away.
