![Palestinian painters draw graffitis to draw attention to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in Khan Yunis, Gaza on 28 March 2020 [Mustafa Hassona/Anadolu Agency]](https://i1.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/20200328_2_41603387_53456371.jpg?resize=1200%2C800&quality=85&strip=all&zoom=1&ssl=1)
As the number of infections and deaths from COVID-19 multiply by the day, there have been increasing calls across the world for people to show solidarity and care for each other, particularly, for Palestine.
The newly-imposed restrictions on travel and large gatherings in Europe, as well as the horrific overcrowding of patients in overwhelmed hospitals has given the world a slight taste of what has been a Palestinian reality for decades. But of course, the differences are many.
The hashtag #WeArePalestine has been trending today as users from Mexico to Kashmir, are taking the opportunity to highlight their newfound recognition of the routine of a Palestinian's daily life under the occupation, in light of the current COVID-19 state lockdowns.
READ: When humanitarian aid demeans political rights for Palestinians
In the occupied West Bank freedom of movement has long been subject to random checkpoints, while residents of the Gaza Strip must go through a series of procedures in order to be allowed out of the coastal enclave – surrounded by Israel to its north and east, and Egypt to the south.
Let's show the world who supports Palestine. Comment below where you are from and use hashtag #WeArePalestine for a retweet! #Palestine#FreePalestine
— π΅πΈ Free Palestine Initiative π΅πΈ (@FreePali1948) April 7, 2020
Sending support and love from California! #WeArePalestine#FreePalestinehttps://t.co/W1yh7HPMgw
— MJ (@2glucks1hyuck) April 7, 2020
#WeArePalestine
If people are finding #UKlockdown difficult to cope with, try it for 51 years with military occupation, land theft, and settler colonialism. #FreePalestine— Stay at Home (@Sophiatrader) April 8, 2020
https://twitter.com/comoeltejon?s=11
I,m from occupied Kashmi#WeArePalestinehttps://t.co/pximbweYEa
— Zehra Iok (: Binte Kashmir (@BinteIok) April 8, 2020
In his article, Gideon Levy compared the strict measures and restrictions imposed by the Israeli government on the Israelis to curb the spread of the epidemic, with the daily suffering of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza β a reality which they have been suffering for decades under siege and occupation.
READ: What going home and staying there means for the Palestinians
However, Israel's military control of Gaza and the West Bank has only grown more brutal during the pandemic. Workers are held in quarantine, prisoners have been infected and Israel is withholding money that could be used to help contain the outbreak.
As The World Focuses On #COVID19 Israel Is Seizing This Opportunity To Expand Its Illegal Settlements, Readying Itself For Annexation Of Almost Half Of The West Bank.#WeArePalestinepic.twitter.com/qDy8oKLUiY
— Robert Inlakesh (@falasteen47) April 8, 2020
If you think a few weeks in lockdown has been hard, imagine how Palestinians are feeling. Especially with Covid-19, things are going to get much worse, and Israel is refusing to show an ounce of mercy #WeArePalestine#FreePalestinepic.twitter.com/3AkFmoPp10
— the timless charlie β¨ (@charliedrwho) April 8, 2020
#WeArePalestine During this lockdown Israel has made life for Palestinians even more difficult. Please help the Palestinian people via registered charities. Continue to boycott Israeli goods.
— W.M.ASLAM (Author) (@WMASLAM63323693) April 8, 2020
In the world's largest open-air prison, Palestinians in Gaza have been living that way for the last 14 years and are already highly susceptible to illnesses because of widespread unemployment and poverty, food insecurity and lack of adequate potable water.
Years of tight restrictions on people and goods have not only destroyed the economy but damaged almost every aspect of life.
There are the young, and the elderly Palestinians in Gaza who have never had the chance to dream of going abroad on holiday, to pursue a career or start a business.
READ: Israel undermines Palestinian efforts to fight coronavirus
Moreover, Gaza's public health system has been severely tested by repeated military conflicts with Israel over the past 12 years and is chronically short of drugs and equipment. When combined with a deadly pandemic, the results could be devastating.
#WeArePalestine. We believe in human rights and equality for all, especially in the face of a humanitarian crisis like the #coronavirus. We call on the Israeli government to lift its blockade and allow medical supplies into #Gaza and the #OccupiedTerritories. https://t.co/eAH4ObTHPi
— Jenna Nand (@JothikaN) April 8, 2020
Under an illegal occupation, Zionist's stop any resources that comes into Palestine. Palestinians are in dire need of medical supplies to help fight the virus. π΅πΈπ΅πΈ #FreePalestine#Palestine#WeArePalestine#Gaza#FreeGazapic.twitter.com/XjQquhQiqo
— π΅πΈ Free Palestine Initiative π΅πΈ (@FreePali1948) April 1, 2020
Director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Ben Jamal, also joined the hashtag to raise awareness about British complicity in supporting Israel's system of oppression, and to challenge it during this crucial period, wrote: "These are times when we are reminded of our essential interconnectedness and that solidarity is an act of empathy. It also springs from the recognition that the oppression of the Palestinian people depends on our complicity to be sustained. We need to end our diplomatic, political and financial support for Israel's ongoing project of ethnic cleansing."
1/2 Taking baby steps in recovering from Corona but what a boost too see #WeArePalestine trending. These are times when we are reminded of our essential interconnectedness and that solidarity is an act of empathy. It also springs from the recognition that the oppression ….
— Ben Jamal (@BenJamalpsc) April 8, 2020
Imagin a terrorist group, kick you and your family out of your house, and when you fight back they call you terrorist..
And then offer you a deal to share the house with them, and when you reject it, they ask "why don't you want peace?"#WeArePalestinepic.twitter.com/q0WyHNWFvN— Ω Ψ΄ΨΉΩ (@Coqark) April 8, 2020
Many have also noted that criticism of Israel's barbaric policies is not anti-Semitic and encouraged others to speak out and oppose the 52-year-old Israeli military occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
While the lack of fair negotiations were also highlighted, with Twitter users raising how Israeli desires are always placed ahead of Palestinian rights.
#WeArePalestine from the UK. We must reject the conflation between disapproval of Israel and antisemitism, it's nothing more than an attempt to silence criticism of a brutal intolerant racist state. https://t.co/pEv84t4gEq
— MidwichCuckoo (@MidwichCuckoo) April 8, 2020
https://twitter.com/TheReal_JesusCstatus/1247810062598496257
COVID-19 has left much of the world's populations under lockdown and curfew, which has helped many understand the restrictions imposed on Palestinians. The biggest difference yet is unlike in Palestine, the state lockdowns and curfews are all just temporary.
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