“From the River to Sea, Palestine Will be Free,” echoed off the buildings of the San Francisco financial district on Nov. 16, as activists rallied and marched through downtown San Francisco. Called by the Palestine Action Network, protesters gathered at the Israeli consulate to denounce the latest genocidal Israeli bombings of the people of Gaza by the Israeli “Defense” Force. The results of IDF bombing campaign: 34 Palestinians killed and over 115 injured. Children as young as 7 were the victims of this latest terrorist action by the Zionist state.
The latest escalation in the ongoing genocidal campaign by the Zionist state came in form of the rocket attack in the Shejaiya district of Gaza City that murdered Baha Abu Al-Ata, a leader of the Islamic Jihad. His wife was killed, and two Palestinians were injured. In response, Palestinian resistance forces fired rocket attacks into Israel, which then was used by the IDF to bomb and kill another 33 Palestinians and injury over 130 people.
The rally was chaired by student activists from the General Union of Palestinian Students from San Francisco State. They explained that in spite of the deplorable conditions imposed by Israel on the people of Gaza, their will was strong and defiant. They explained that after a fragile ceasefire was negotiated, people came out into the streets of Gaza demonstrating their steadfastness and determination to stand their ground and resist the almost total Israeli blockade. The blockade, a violation of international law has led to a shortage of food stuffs and medicines, crippled the economy resulting in an unemployment rate of over 50 percent.
The chairs read the names of the 34 Palestinians, all under the age of 35, who were murdered by the Zionist bombings. At the rally a number of solidarity statements were made by member groups of PAN including Jewish Voice for Peace, Queers Undermining Israeli Terror, and the Arab Resource and Organizing Center and the ANSWER Coalition. After the brief program, the march took off and marched through the streets of downtown San Francisco, stopping at the ICE offices. In front of the ICE office speakers pointed to the domestic policies of the United States that has concentration camps at the border of the United States where children are separated from their parents and put in cages and U.S. support for Israeli polices that have led to Gaza being called the largest open-air prison in the world.
The demonstration ended at the busy tourist spot of the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero, where statements of international solidarity were heard from people fight for liberation from Kashmir and the Philippines. A long-time Palestinian activist called on the crowd to stay determined and continue the fight for a “free Palestine in our lifetime.”
