More than 1,000 people mobilized in Washington on Saturday to support the Palestinians and call for an end to US aid to Israel.
The demonstration on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial came while the ceasefire that ended 11 days of intense fighting between Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip continues.
“We hope to send a clear message to the US government that the days of supporting the Israeli state without repercussions are over,” said Washington lawyer Sharif Silmi, 39, as he stood in the crowd, where many protesters held flags. Palestinian red, white, green and black.
“We will oppose any politician who continues to finance arms to Israel. We will oppose them, we will vote against them, we will finance their opponents, until we remove them from their positions, ”Silmi said.
Lama Alahmad, a resident of neighboring Virginia and of Palestinian origin, said that American public opinion is changing in favor of the Palestinian cause.
“There is a great change” in the United States regarding the Palestinian cause that seeks a sovereign homeland, said Alahmad.
“We just want the world to recognize that we are human beings. We are not terrorists, ”said Alahmad, a 43-year-old mother who grew up in the United Arab Emirates before moving to the United States about 20 years ago.
Silmi insisted that there is now widespread opposition in the United States to the way Israel treats Palestinians, which he compared to apartheid in South Africa.
With information from AFP
