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Indybay Feature

Pics of San Franciscans Rallying Behind Israel's Massacre Of Gazans

by scary
As the number of Palestinians killed by Israel in Gaza passes 800 and the US and Red Cross accuse Israel of targeting aid convoys and engaging in other war crimes, some in San Francisco still choose to rally behind Israel. The following photos are a pictures of Gaza and pictures of a pro-Israel counter-protest to a rally for Gaza on Saturday January 10th 2009. You might think that this crowd doesn't represent the views of many Americans and that could be correct but both the US House and Senate voted with no opposition to a resolution backing Israel just yesterday and the bills were sponsored by several of our local representatives.
640_01_promassacre_rally_1.jpg
§Crowd In Front Of City Hall
by scary
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This is across the street for a rally for Gaza organized by ANSWER that drew several thousand.
§Gaza
by scary
03_gaza_destroyed.jpg
§What does standing with Israel mean?
by scary
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Does it mean excusing the more than 300 children killed so far in the Gaza offensive?
§What does standing with Israel mean?
by scary
640_05_promassacre_rally_10.jpg
Does it mean excusing the destruction of thousands of homes and leaving over a million people without access to clean water or electricity for several weeks?
§Israel & The US
by scary
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The pro-war crowd always point out how Israel is similar to the US and there is a lot of truth to that. The US has engaged in similar war crimes in Iraq in places like Fallujah where a whole city was surrounded and bombed for weeks on end.
§"Terror Free Day"
by scary
640_07_promassacre_rally_4.jpg
The terror caused by Israel to the people of Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon is on a scale that far exceeds that caused by the Palestinian rockets that have killed just a handful of people in the last few years.
§Qassams: Israel's Excuse For A Massacre
by scary
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During last year's ceasefire almost no rockets were fired into Israel by Hamas but Israel kept up its assasinations of Hamas leaders and a blockade of Gaza that prevented food and medicine from getting to the Palestinian people. Israel repeats over and over again that it left Gaza, but it forces Egypt to keep that border shutdown and attacks any boats that try to get into Gaza by sea even if the boats are clearly just carrying humanitarian supplies (or trying to get Palestinians out so they can go to school abroad or get medical care).
§Zionism
by scary
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Nationalism is one of the roots of Israel's tendency for extreme violence and provides the moral excuse that allows many supporters of Israel to ignore Palestinian deaths or blame the victims for their own deaths
§Isreal Is Destroying More Than Hamas
by scary
640_10_promassacre_rally_7.jpg
Bombing the most densely populated place on earth hurts civilians more than militants and as the elected government many of those killed listed as "noncivilians" are those doing basic governmental jobs like delivering mail and collecting trash. Hamas will likely come out of this tragedy as the main winner since it is clear that Abbas and the PA are not willing to take a strong stand against Israel anymore even when Palestinians are dying by the hundreds.
§Dead Child In Gaza
by scary
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§Rallying Round The Flag
by scary
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§Israeli Tanks
by scary
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This is force that is now killing Gazans and what do they have to fight back with? Rockets that are no much more than large bottle rockets. It is likely that more people died in Israel due to accidents shooting off fireworks last year than died because of Hamas rockets.
§When is killing too much?
by scary
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At what point will those who support Israel start to question Israel's actions. Will it take 1000 Palestinians dead, 10,000 dead, 100,000 dead? When does one's common humanity trump nationalism?
§Gaza
by scary
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§2007... so why war now?
by scary
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if rocket fire in 2007 was the problem, why this massacre after a long lull in the rocket fire? See http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10123.shtml for info about rocket fire numbers in recent years
§Gaza
by scary
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§Across The Street
by scary
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The rally for Israel pictured above was across the street from a large Palestine demonstration
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peacenow.jpg
Some one thousand Israeli activists from Peace Now and the left-wing Meretz party protested Saturday against the offensive in Gaza, opposite the Defense Ministry compound in Tel Aviv.

"We have assembled to call on Israel to think twice before expanding the [Gaza] operation, we are here because we care about the IDF soldiers," said Peace Now chief Yariv Oppenheimer.

Israel indicated Saturday that it would begin a third phase of its two-week operation aimed at halting rocket fire on its southern communities, dropping leaflets in Gaza warning civilians that it plans to step up its military campaign.

"This is a demonstration that includes many true Zionists who fear for peace in the country, but our Zionism does not make us crave blood and war," Oppenheimer said.

Meretz chairman Haim Oron also attended the demonstration, and called on the Israeli government to "Stop the war and reach an agreement as soon as possible." This is "the only way to stem the bloodshed," he said.

Oron and Meretz initially supported the Israel Defensive Forces operation when it first began. But, he explained Saturday, "We said that the action's objective was to reach a cease-fire as early and as quickly as possible in order to achieve calm." He said that the time had come for even those who back the operation to call for a truce.

The protesters were joined by activists from the Hadash movement and members of the radical left in Israel. There was a minor skirmish at the sidelines of the protest when Oppenheimer, who is also a member of the Labor Party, tried to pull down a banner reading: "Not pleasant, a murderer," a reference to the election campaign headed by Labor Party leader Ehud Barak.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1054265.html
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez offered words of support for the Palestinians in a message read during an anti-war rally in northern Israel Saturday.

Thousands of Hadash party activists took part in the rally against the IDF operation in the Gaza Strip, while dozens of right-wing activists demonstrated outside the venue in Nazareth Ilit.

In his message to the protestors, which was read to the crowd during the event, Chavez said: "We are not united by one nationality; rather, what unites us is…The blood shed in Gaza is the blood of humanity. Venezuela kisses each and every one of you and stresses that it supports the Palestinian people and all those who suffer from the occupation."

Chavez has recently ordered the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador to Venezuela in protest of the Gaza operation.

Arab MK slams 'massacre'

Addressing the rightist protestors outside the venue in his speech, Knesset Member Mohammad Barakeh said: "Remember who you are and on whose land you're standing. We have childhood memories here, the history of our forefathers, and a future. Those who have no memories from here have no right to talk to us. We insist on staying on this land – either on it, or buried in it."

Holding a picture of a girl killed in the fighting, Barakeh said: "We can't allow ourselves to disappoint her soul. There are tears for Gaza, but at the same time there is a clear stance against the massacre. We continue to stand up to the occupier, to racism, and to the massacre, and we say: 'Stop the slaughter, because we will not give up.'"

"There are people – Tzipi Livni, Ehud Olmert, and Ehud Barak – who are attempting to score political points through the war," Barakeh said. "They are waging this war for the sake of elections, and we are running against the war in the elections."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3653898,00.html
by Maya
Please don't pay taxes to support this slaughter!
by clifford roddy
great photos and perspective of the day. Good work.
by What happened?
Looks like tons of Zionists came out of the wood work- anyone know who/what organized them and where they came from? Bused in from LA, maybe? Is this typical for San francisco?
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