Anti-Judaisation protests in Al-Lid

Hundreds of Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian city of Al-Lid took to the streets on Friday in protest at Israel’s Judaisation policies. The protests began after the Friday prayers in the city’s mosques, with slogans condemning the expulsion of Palestinians and expansion of Israeli settlements.

Several community groups took part in the demonstration, which saw the main group of protesters head for the city centre. The leader of the Islamic Movement inside Israel, Sheikh Raed Salah, was amongst those taking part.

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Israeli security forces stopped the protesters and tried to disperse them, claiming that the authorities had “closed the main streets”. Protesters raised the Palestinian flag, continued on their way and chanted “Allah is the Greatest”. They said that they fear neither the security forces nor the Israeli settlers.

“We are here in order to fight the fascist attempts to set up settlements in our city,” said a former prisoner of the Israelis taking part in the demonstration. “We do not agree with bringing more settlers in as they pose a major threat to our city, and the Israeli government is intent on expelling Palestinians.”

Other protesters said that they are not going to allow the Israeli government to expel them from their own land. “Here we were born and here we are going to continue our fight against Israel’s racial discrimination, even if it means that we are killed in the process,” insisted one.