A call for peace

Rick Gunderman

Hamiltonians gather to protest siege on Gaza

Over a hundred protesters gathered outside of the Federal Building in downtown Hamilton on Nov. 18 to call for an end to Israel’s siege of the Gaza Strip. The conflict has claimed the lives of over 100 Palestinians with an additional 850 wounded as Israeli airstrikes hammer Gaza.

Demonstrators walked a picket line, holding signs and chanting various slogans, including “from the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free,” and “Gaza, Gaza, don’t you cry – Palestine will never die.”

The location was chosen to protest the Harper government’s support for Israel, both diplomatic and military. Demonstrators drove this point home with the chant “Harper, war monger, prime minster no longer.”

Events proceeded peacefully and police presence was minimal.

The demonstration lasted for about an hour.

Demonstrators were treated to speeches from various leaders in the anti-war activist community, including representatives of the Hamilton Coalition to Stop the War, the Palestinian Association of Hamilton and Independent Jewish Voices.

“The massacre in Gaza did not start a few days ago,” said Salah Abdelrahman, a third- year engineering student at McMaster. “It started in 2006 when Israel decided to enforce an inhumane siege on Gaza … The sad part is that people have to see children lying on the ground dead before they take action.”

McMaster students also attended the demonstrations at the Israeli Consulate on Nov. 13. The Hamilton rally followed other demonstrations across the country against the renewed attacked on Gaza.