ARREST AFTER LEG INJURY IN WAKE OF CITY DEMO:
CITY DEMONSTRATION DEMANDS ‘JUSTICE’ IN MIDDLE EAST
A PALESTINIAN flag was planted on top of a major Nottingham building as protesters converged on the city centre in the wake of recent violence in the Middle East.
A protester climbed scaffolding on the Clarks building in Long Row, going up several storeys before planting the flag on a pole at the top.
The gesture came as hundreds of protesters took to Old Market Square in protest against the treatment of Palestinian people by the Israeli government.
It followed an Israeli air strike this week that killed several people including children in Palestine, Gaza’s health officials claimed as violent clashes escalated.
And people from across Nottingham took part in a protest calling to “free Palestine”, with chants of “no justice, no peace” drifiting across the city centre.
Several hundred people attended
the gathering, which started at noon on Saturday and followed a “Kill the Bill” gathering against injustice and the right to protest.
A spokesperson for the Muslim Council of Mosques in Nottingham made a speech at the protest and called for Palestine to be free.
They said: “Why are we here today? What has inflamed and enraged everyone? Is it the fact that
Gaza is an open-air prison with no medication and no healthcare, and no freedom?
“Is it the fact that Palestinians in Israel are treated like second-class citizens? This has been going on, and on, and on.
“We want the return to the homes of Palestinians.
“To lose your home is the most tragic of things. Can you imagine the feeling of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians thrown out of their homes, living as refugees in neighbouring countries?
“We want the return of the refugees to their homes, we want the end to Gaza as an open-air prison. “No justice no peace.” Crowds gathered outside the Council House chanted “enough is enough”, “free Palestine” and “resistance is justified when Palestine is justified”.
One of the protesters in attendance was Amani Aziz, 34, who had travelled from the Derby area to attend the protest.
She told the Post: “It’s horrendous what is happening and what has happened for years to the people in Palestine.
“I have been vocal about my support for them for a long time and I think more people should stand up and call out what has been happening.
“We have a Government which has bankrolled and supported the Israeli regime for a long time and refuses to recognise the rights of Palestinian people.
“It’s not good enough. There needs to be action to stop what is happening in Gaza and to protect and rehouse hundreds of thousands of people.”
Protests took place in Nottingham as well as other major cities across the country in response to the unrest.
It was organised by the Nottingham Palestine Solidarity Campaign, with people seen holding banners in support of the cause and waving Palestinian flags.