|
Cairo:
Members of an international group gathered in Cairo to protest
against the siege of Gaza have rejected an Egyptian offer to
allow 100 of them entry into the Palestinian territory.
Organisers of the Gaza Freedom March (GFM), which is comprised of
1,300 people from 42 different countries, declined the offer on
Wednesday, saying "we refuse to whitewash the siege of Gaza".
Egyptian authorities
had initially said the group would not be allowed to cross the
border, citing security reasons and a "sensitive situation".
The activists were hoping to march into Gaza on the anniversary of
Israel's 22-day offensive on the territory as a sign of solidarity
with its people, carrying with them aid and supplies.
Egypt's Rafah border crossing point is
the only entrance point into the Gaza Strip not controlled by
Israel.
However, both it and the Israeli-controlled border points have
largely remained sealed since 2007, when Palestinian faction Hamas
took full control of the territory after brutal infighting with
rivals Fatah.
Cairo concession
March organisers had called the Egyptian government's concession
a "partial victory" but said the offer was not sufficient.
Ali Abunimah, co-founder of the Electronic Intifada and a
participant in the march, posted to his blog, saying that "it's not
enough and the pressure and protests should be kept up".
"However, getting 100 or 1,300 into Gaza does not end the siege by
itself. This is not about getting some or even all into Gaza, its
building global support and pressure to end the siege of Gaza," he
said.
Roqayah Chamseddine, a US student attending the march, told Al
Jazeera: "Our mission is not to be divided and sending only 100 of
over 1,300 would be doing just that.
"For anyone to claim that Egypt was doing us a favour by offering to
allow 100 GFM members to go is asinine and baseless.
"Those borders must be opened and as long as Egypt continues to
seemingly aid Israel in subjugating the people of Palestine we will
also continue to resist an protest."
Gaza Freedom March members have held multiple small protests in
Cairo, as well as on Tuesday joining Egyptian activists to
demonstrate against a one-day visit by Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel's
prime minister.
Earlier on Tuesday, around 40 US citizens marching to their embassy
in the Egyptian capital were met along the way by riot police, who
corralled them into groups of 10 before allowing them access,
participants said.
On Sunday and Monday, about 80 people held a sit-in oustide the
French embassy to try to rally international support for the
movement.
Others, such as US citizen Hedy Epstein, an 85-year-old Holocaust
survivor, have gone on hunger strike to protest against Egypt's
refusal to allow the march to proceed.
Viva Palestina
A separate aid convoy, which had been trying to reach Gaza by way of
Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba, has meanwhile agreed to travel via
Syria instead.
The Viva Palestina convoy, carrying 210 lorries full of humanitarian
aid for the people of Gaza, crossed into Syria on Tuesday after
spending five days in Jordan, negotiating with the Egyptian consul
there.
It is now expected to set sail from the Syrian port of Latakia to
the Egyptian port of El Arish on the Mediterranean, and then cross
through Rafah into Gaza from there.
A statement from the Egypt's ministry of information said that
George Galloway, the British member of parliament leading the
convoy, had been told by November 10 that the group had to travel
through El Arish, even though it is not the most direct route.
|
In Modi's Gujarat, Muslims assume Hindu names to find work
Muslims will remain
strong despite conspiracies: King Abdullah
Sonia omits Rao as she praises Congress PMs on anniversary: 
21 yr old
US Muslim
leaders try to counter radicals’ influence on their youths:
Mosques and Islamic
organizations across the United States regularly issue
statements.....
Ghalib still
waiting for an 'ashiana' in Agra: 
In the West Bank, a hotel with no name - and no guests:
The beds have been
freshly made. In the lobby, the waiters have set the coffee tables
nicely. In the kitchen ...
Comment on this article