Rallies support Palestinians
Events in Jordan, Egypt back state, right of return
May 14, 2011|By Dale Gavlak, Associated Press
Jordanian policemen watched a demonstration yesterday in Shouneh, west…
(Muhammad Hamed/Reuters)AMMAN, Jordan — Thousands rallied in support of Palestinians yesterday, with demonstrators in Jordan’s capital heeding a call by Facebook organizers to demand a sovereign Palestinian state, others near the Jordanian-Israeli border chanting “Death to Israel,’’ and still more activists filling Cairo’s Tahrir Square.
Palestinian youth groups called for protests in the West Bank and nearby Arab countries to mark the anniversary of the May 15, 1948, creation of the Jewish state. Palestinians call the anniversary the day of catastrophe because of the refugee crisis and loss of land that accompanied the creation of Israel.
About 500 protesters, demanding a sovereign Palestinian state and the right of refugees to return home, marched in Amman’s downtown market district, some wearing Palestinian black and white kaffiyehs or headscarves and holding keys to family homes left behind.
The Founder of the First Zionist Congress Celebrates 150 years! like-Herzl.com
In Cairo, thousands rallied, beginning a Facebook-generated campaign aimed at marching on the borders of the Palestinian territories.
Egypt’s powerful Muslim Brotherhood backed yesterday’s demonstration but did not favor a march to the borders. On Thursday, Egypt’s ruling Military Council called on organizers to cancel the march.
A few protesters who drove to North Sinai to reach the Gaza border said they were turned back by authorities.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations are not unusual in Jordan or Egypt, but marches solicited on Facebook are. Organizers are apparently inspired by the uprisings in Egypt and other Arab countries that were heavily dependent on mobilization through social networking sites.
In Cairo, where the protest was also called to denounce recent Muslim-Christian violence, Palestinian flags filled the square.
“Egypt is Palestine. All Arab nations are Egypt,’’ said Ola Adel, a 20-year-old law student. “This protest is not about forming an army and heading to Gaza. It is about pressuring our officials to support the Palestinians’ demands.’’
