Cloudy sky, pouring rain. In the meantime, protests have been going on for Palestine since Monday at the port of Tacoma in the state of Washington, USA. Their protest to stop a US warship. According to them, this warship is going to Israel from the United States loaded with weapons.
Demonstrators fear that weapons loaded aboard the warships will be used by Israel against innocent people in Gaza in the ongoing conflict. More than 10,000 Palestinian civilians, including 6,000 women and children, have been killed in Israel's indiscriminate attacks for 31 days.
"We want a ceasefire now," said Waseem Hayes, who took part in the protest in Tacoma. We want to stop killing people now. We now want to see the real test of US foreign policy. We want to see the end of US funding to Israel.
Waseem Hedge works as a case manager and community outreach coordinator at the Arab Resources Organizing Center (AROC). The organization organized a protest at the Port of Tacoma yesterday.
Hayes said AROC had learned from a confidential source that the ship would be loaded with weapons and military equipment. From here the ship will go to Israel. This is Israel that keeps bombing Gaza.
Al-Jazeera could not immediately verify the protesters' allegations. But Pentagon spokesman Jeff Jurgenson told a Qatar-based television channel in an e-mail message that the ship was actually used to "transport US military goods."
Jurgenson declined to provide any further information. In the e-mail, he wrote, for the sake of the confidentiality of various activities of the Department of Defense, detailed information about the ships used to transport military goods cannot be given.
Yesterday the protestors lined up on the port road in the rain. At this time three large banners were seen near them, which had various slogans including 'No Aid to Israel'.
Another type of demonstration is to block ships
Protesters in raincoats and jackets and carrying umbrellas marched around the Cape Orlando ship waiting at the Port of Tacoma. At this time, they took a position outside the dock of the port.
Demonstrators waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans such as 'Save Gaza', 'Free Palestine', 'No more aid to Israeli crimes'.
Protesters brought bicycles and cars to block the port road. Members of the Council of Water Warriors take a symbolic position around the ship with seven canoes in the water.
Patricia Gonzales, a female protester from the Water Warriors Council of the Pualap Tribe, said that she was motivated to take a position in the sea with a boat in this protest because they have a lot in common with the history of violence against Palestinians and displacement. from their homes.
Gonzales said his indigenous ancestors were forced into boarding schools. Attempts have been made to institutionally destroy their traditions and culture. The Canadian government and even Pope Francis have referred to these schools as weapons of 'cultural genocide'.
Gonzales also said that his community is still carrying that horrific history from generation to generation. "When it's a genocide, we don't have anything left to understand," he said.
Abbie Brooke, who took part in the protest, is Jewish. He is anti-Zionist. He helped organize a protest at the Port of Tacoma yesterday. He visited Israel as well as the Israeli-occupied territories in the West Bank and Golan Heights. All this encouraged him to take a stand against Israeli aggression.
Referring to the establishment of the state of Israel after expelling the Palestinians in 1948, this Jewish woman was saying, 'When I was 18, I went to Palestine. I then saw the issue of Israeli occupation and colonial settlements. I saw the checkpoint. I spoke to Palestinians who lost their homes in the Nakba. Wanted to know about their experience.
Abby said, 'You don't have to ask any questions to know what's going on when you see how Palestinians live their lives every day. The reality is that Israel is a racist state through military occupation.
Cape Orlando in the face of obstacles in the second round
For the second week in a row, Cape Orlando ships have encountered obstacles while sailing. The Cape Orlando was about to set sail from the port of Oakland, California last Friday. Three protesters then blocked the stairs of the ship. Because of this, the ship's departure was delayed for several hours.
The U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement that it eventually removed three protesters from the ship's ladder. They are under investigation for alleged violations of federal law.
Yesterday, one of the organizers of the demonstration in the port of Tacoma expressed doubts about the Hedge Cape Orlando ship and said that they want to send a strong message to President Biden, who is busy with the 2024 election campaign, by blocking this ship with military equipment.
A few days ago the ship Cape Orlando entered the port of Tacoma. Recently, Biden called on Congress to provide $1,400 million in aid to Israel. Of this, $3.8 billion will be provided by 2023.
The United States has provided the largest military aid to Israel since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. The United States provides 16 percent of Israel's defense budget.
Despite their protests, Hedges said military personnel were loading the ship with military equipment. It is very unfortunate that they cannot stop the loading of military equipment on that ship. But their success lies in delaying the ship's journey.
You must be logged in to post a comment.