Hundreds of Marchers Protest Aid to Israel, Urge End to Violence

Hundreds of people lined the streets near the Federal Building on Saturday to protest U.S. aid to Israel and to garner support for Palestinian liberation.

At 2 p.m, the crowd chanted, “Free Palestine,” and waved signs calling for an end to the violence that some Palestinians in the United States said they doubt will end. Some said the recent surge in violence forced them to join the protest.

“I am here because of the latest bombing and killing of innocent people,” said Al Masri, 35, referring to the Friday attack of Israeli F-16 warplanes on three Palestinian cities. The air attack was in retaliation for the bombing of an Israeli shopping mall earlier Friday. It marked the first time Israeli forces used such warplanes in more than 30 years. Friday’s death toll was 16, and about 170 Palestinians and Israelis were wounded.

“With the news I was hearing [Friday]. . . . the scale has been tipped over,” said Nidal Ghizawi, 33, a first-time protester. “I just had to express my feelings.”

The rally was organized by the American Arab Antidiscrimination Committee and the Free Palestine Coalition, which hope that the United Nations will send troops to Israel, said Michel Shehadeh, the director for the antidiscrimination committee’s Western region.

Masri said, “We are here to send a message to the Bush administration to put more pressure on Israel to stop the killing and to stop sending U.S. tax dollars to Israel.”

As protesters marched from the Federal Building through the streets of Westwood, law enforcement escorts halted traffic. Onlookers watched the procession from cafes and sidewalks.

William Diehl, 25, said the constant spotlight on the conflict in Israel has left him desensitized to the nation’s plight.

But for the hundreds who attended the march, there cannot be enough attention given.

Holding her 5-month-old son, Amal Farah, 37, a native of the West Bank, said most of her family is still there.

She has not been able to visit since the violence began, but her relatives tell her about the deaths of friends and children that many never hear about.

“I’m just looking for the freedom,” Farah said. “This is too much.”