San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Palestinians hold mass rally as Egypt guides cease-fire talks
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Tens of thousands of Palestinians rallied in the Gaza Strip on Saturday to mark the first anniversary of their mass protests along the Israeli border, as the territory’s Hamas leaders largely restrained the crowds ahead of a hoped-for cease-fire deal.
Demonstrators largely kept their distance from the border, though small crowds of activists approached the perimeter fence and threw stones and explosives toward Israeli troops on the other side. The forces responded with tear gas and opened fire, killing three Palestinians and wounding 64.
Early Sunday, the Israeli military said five rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel. No casualties were reported,
the military said. The rockets appeared to be in retaliation for the Palestinian deaths during the protest. Hamas had pledged to keep the crowds a safe distance from the fence as Egyptian mediators were working to cement a deal that Hamas hopes will ease a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade of the territory. Hamas officials say that Israel is offering a package of economic incentives in exchange for calm along the volatile border.
Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official, said the group had received “positive signs” from the Egyptians. He added that the Egyptian team was to return to Israel on Sunday to continue the talks.
Saturday’s protest comes at a sensitive time, with Israel and Hamas, bitter enemies that have fought three wars and dozens of smaller skirmishes, both having a strong interest in keeping things quiet.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking his fourth consecutive term in April 9 elections, but is facing a serious challenge from a group of ex-army chiefs who have criticized what they say is his failed Gaza policy. With a lack of alternatives, Netanyahu has been forced at times to rely on Hamas to maintain stability along Israel’s volatile southern front. In the final stretch of the campaign, Netanyahu needs to keep the Israel-Gaza frontier quiet, without seeming to make concessions to Hamas.
Hamas, meanwhile, faces growing unrest in Gaza as a result of worsening conditions after more than a decade of an Israeli-Egyptian blockade. The two countries imposed the blockade in 2007 after Hamas, an Islamic militant group that seeks Israel’s destruction, seized control of Gaza from the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority.
In San Francisco on Saturday, more than 100 people rallied at the 24th Street Mission BART Station, many carrying signs saying “END the siege on GAZA.” The demonstrators marched down Mission Street, escorted by police officers.
Fares Akram is an Associated Press writer.