Strikes and protests against social neglect of Palestinian communities

On 10 February, Standing Together called a day of strikes, protests, and other forms of direct-action civil disobedience throughout Israel, as part of the campaign against the social neglect of Palestinian communities that has allowed an epidemic of violent crime to take place.

Standing Together writes:

This is HUGE and it’s happening right now! We declared a country-wide day of disruption and civil disobedience in protest of organized crime in Palestinian society in Israel.

Thousands of us, Palestinians and Jews, took to the streets to stand against this violence and our government’s deliberate abandonment. We’re protesting through the entire day and bringing the issue to the center of public attention through a series of disruptive actions:

We blocked Tel Aviv’s major highway, the Ayalon, and the entrance to Jerusalem; doctors and nurses went on strike in 12 hospitals across the country; and we poured red dye into public fountains in Haifa, Be’er Sheva, and Tel Aviv to represent the bloodshed that is consuming Palestinian communities. Forty people have already been killed this year alone – this is an emergency! 

Our extremist government is deliberately neglecting crime to keep Palestinian society fragmented and weak so it can’t threaten their hold on power. In response, we’re organizing and taking direct action.

Already this morning police arrested several activists – the same police that continues to ignore the epidemic of homicides occurring every day across the country. If only the police was as forceful tackling crime in Palestinian communities as it is detaining protestors.

Our day culminated in a major protest in Haifa, marking the end of a massive mobilization of our society. In spite of arrests and intimidation, we managed to capture news feeds and television channels and the crime epidemic is at the front of the conversation in our society right now. This is the first step in making a real change, and it’s why protest actions are so important.

We know that the crime epidemic isn’t just a crisis of Palestinian society – it’s a crisis of our shared society, and all of us must fight it together. We need true partnership and solidarity in this moment more than ever, and all of us have a role to play in creating a future of safety and dignity for all.

Posted 11 February