Arab Israelis in Haifa protest over Gaza killings

HAIFA, Israel: Hundreds of Arab Israelis demonstrated Saturday evening in Haifa in solidarity with Gaza, where more than 60 Palestinians have died from Israeli fire in recent days, an AFP reporter said.

Protesters shouted “down with the occupation, stop fascism” and denounced the arrests Friday of 19 people in northern the city during a previous rally held in solidarity with Gaza residents.

They waved four large letters in bright red, making up the word “Gaza” and chanted slogans including “Jews and Arabs, we are not enemies”.

A total of 62 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli gunfire on Monday, when thousands of Palestinians protested as the US officially moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem after recognising the disputed city as the capital of Israel.

They were among 119 Palestinians killed by Israeli troops on the border between the Gaza Strip and the Jewish State since mass demonstrations started on March 30, according to authorities in Gaza, which is run by the Islamist movement Hamas.

The Israeli army insists its actions are necessary to defend the border and prevent mass infiltrations.

It accuses Hamas of using the demonstrations to approach and damage the border fence, including laying explosive devices and attacking soldiers.

Palestinian and Israeli sources on Sunday said a Palestinian prisoner had died of a heart attack whilst in Israeli custody.

Aziz Ewisat was serving a 30year prison sentence since 2014 and had suffered a heart attack earlier this month, the Palestinian Prisoners’ Club said.