Tel Aviv protest
Photo: Oren Ziv, ActiveStills
Leftists protest Jericho raid
About 150 leftists gather in Tel Aviv; one protester: Israelis fed government lies
About 150 left-wingers demonstrated opposite the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv Tuesday evening to protest the IDF operation in Jericho, which left three Palestinians dead.
"Israelis are fed lies by the government and we're here to tell the truth," said one activist, Hulud Badawi, who works for human rights organizations in Jerusalem.
Jericho Raid
Attila Somfalvi
Left-wingers: Jericho operation motivated by political considerations ahead of elections
Badawi said that Israelis live under an illusion that will eventually blow up in their faces. The Israeli side is in denial living the good life while not far away, beyond the "imaginary green line," people suffer, she said.
"Those prisoners in the Jericho jail constituted no danger to Israeli society," Badawi added.
The spontaneous demonstration was arranged by organizations opposed to IDF operations in Gaza and the West Bank, among them the Hadash party and anarchists who object to the West BAnk security fence.
'Part of Olmert's campaign'
The signs held up by protesters read "save me from the army", "stop the occupation" and "Kadima (forward) to the next war."
Leftists unimpressed with IDF (Photo: Oren Ziv, ActiveStills)
Omer, a 21-year-old anti-fence activist who has taken part in past protests with Jewish and Palestinian activists, said: "It's clear that it's part of (Acting Prime Minister) Olmert's campaign. This protest may not help, but killing people and building barriers will not solve the problems."
Anther activist, Aviv Sela, said that he is shocked by the IDF's operation in Jericho.
"It's not as if they were violent or were carrying explosives on their body," Sela said of the detainees. "With this operation, Olmert told the people of Israel he's stronger than anybody and therefore they should vote for him."
