Hundreds of protesters gathered near the Capitol in Washington, chanting pro-Palestinian slogans and criticizing the Israeli and US governments over the war in Gaza and on the occasion of the anniversary of the expulsion of about 700,000 Palestinians during the creation of the state of Israel in 1948, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA.
About 400 people gathered on the “National Mall“ despite the rain to mark the 76th anniversary of the so-called Nakba - the Arabic word for catastrophe.
Nakba Day is observed every year on May 15. The State of Israel was declared on May 14, 1948. Palestinians held marches and demonstrations on that day.
At the demonstration in Washington, calls were made in support of Palestinian rights and for an immediate end to Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip. "No peace on stolen land" and "End the killing, stop the crimes/Israel out of Palestine,'' echoed calls in the crowd.
Protesters also directed their anger at US President Joe Biden, whom they accused of feigning concern over the number of casualties in Gaza.
This year's commemoration of Nakba Day was fueled by anger at the ongoing siege of Gaza. The latest war between Israel and “Hamas” began on October 7, when the Palestinian group “Hamas” and other fighters invaded southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage. Palestinian militants still hold about 100 prisoners, and the Israeli military has killed more than 35,000 people in Gaza, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health, which does not distinguish between civilians and militants, the AP noted.
There is also widespread anger at the violent suppression of numerous pro-Palestinian protest camps at universities across the country. In recent weeks, the police broke up tent camps in more than 60 educational institutions.
Activists in Washington demanded an immediate end to hostilities in Gaza and a right of return for Palestinian refugees.
After the Arab-Israeli war that followed Israel's creation, Israel refused to allow refugees to return because it would lead to a Palestinian majority within Israel's borders. Instead, they have become a permanent refugee community that now numbers about 6 million, most of them living in crowded urban refugee camps in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In Gaza, refugees and their descendants make up about three quarters of the population, AP notes.
At the same time, 19 pro-Palestinian activists were arrested during an attempted occupation of a school building in Pennsylvania. Among them are six students from the University of Pennsylvania, AP reported. A week ago, authorities broke up a protest camp on campus and arrested nine students.
Across the country, students and others set up tent camps on campuses to protest the war between Israel and Hamas. The protesters are demanding an end to academic cooperation with Israel. Tensions over the war have been high on college campuses since the fall, but pro-Palestinian demonstrations have spread quickly since the April 18 police crackdown on a camp at Columbia University. The demonstrations reached all corners of the United States, becoming the largest protest movement on college campuses in decades, and spread to other countries, including Europe, according to the AP.
Nearly 3,000 people have been arrested on US campuses in the past month. As summer vacation approaches, new arrests are fewer and campuses are quieter, the agency notes.