Palestinians in Gaza had hardly begun their “Great March of Return” campaign before Israel responded with a level of violence and brutality not seen for some time, writes Lisa Gleeson. Yet their protests continue.
What began as a protest in 1976 after a rash of land confiscations by Israel — met by Israel with the killing of six unarmed Palestinians — Land Day each March 30 is an annual focal point for Palestinian frustration at being forcibly displaced and unable to return home.
This year’s Land Day was the start of a “Great March of Return” campaign that will run up to al Nakba (“the Catastrophe”) on May 15. Al Nakba marks the founding of the Israeli state on the back of the dispossession of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians — many in Gaza are refugees from these events 70 years ago.
Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza gathered near the wall marking the the border Israel maintains — and uses to impose a brutal siege for the past decade. Conservative Israelis decried the horror of Palestinian “terrorists” provocatively marching to coincide with Jewish Passover celebrations, Gazans continued to flock to the border and set up camp.
Read the article by Lisa Gleeson in Green Left Weekly.