Nisren Salim holds up the peace sign, while attending a demonstration in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National
Nisren Salim holds up the peace sign, while attending a demonstration in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National
Nisren Salim holds up the peace sign, while attending a demonstration in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National
Nisren Salim holds up the peace sign, while attending a demonstration in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National

Protesters marching over Gaza hospital bombing brand US and Israel as 'terrorists'


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Hundreds of Palestinians marched through the streets of Ramallah on Wednesday to protest against Israel’s aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip.

As the crowds streamed away from Al Manara Square, in the centre of the occupied West Bank’s administrative capital, many chanted “America equals terrorist” and other anti-West slogans.

A day after an Israeli air strike killed at least 500 people at Al Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza, Palestinians across the West Bank voiced their anger by protesting in the streets of major cities.

A girl sits on her father's shoulders while attending a protest in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National
A girl sits on her father's shoulders while attending a protest in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National

The Israeli military has denied responsibility for the strike but that has done little to ease Palestinians' fear and anger.

“It's horrible, it's unbelievable,” said Nisren Salim. “No human could believe that would happen to their family and friends in Gaza.”

A Melkite priest who helped to guide protesters through the city, said: “It’s a tragedy, it’s a genocide.”

Ramallah, normally a bustling city, was eerily quiet save for the hundreds of protesters. Shops were closed and the streets were mostly devoid of people and traffic.

Toddlers sat on their fathers' shoulders waving Palestinian flags as the crowd marched.

Many of the children joined in their parents' chants of “Netanyahu is a terrorist” and “Gazans are not terrorists”. The rhetoric, particularly against the western allies of Israel, was notably angrier than usual.

One woman sported a Hamas banner wrapped around her white hijab, but political allegiances were mostly invisible. The protesters were far more focused on justice for Gazans.

A black-and-white chequered kaffiyeh hung loosely around Ms Salim’s neck. The commercial manager, 42, brought her daughter, 11, and son, seven, to the protest.

She said she wanted her children to experience the march, “to learn how we are as Palestinians in the West Bank and to support our friends and our families in Gaza”.

Protesters gather at Al Manara Square in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National
Protesters gather at Al Manara Square in Ramallah. Willy Lowry / The National

US President Joe Biden travelled to Israel on Wednesday in a show of solidarity with the country following an extensive attack launched by Hamas on Southern Israel that killed 1,300 people on October 7.

Washington has said it is ready to defend Israel. The US sent two aircraft carriers to the region and has stationed thousands of US sailors at the ready off the coast.

Mr Biden said he would ask Congress for an “unprecedented” military package to help Israel.

“I say to all of Israel, the United States isn't going anywhere either,” he added.

“We're going to stand with you, we will walk beside you in those dark days. We'll walk beside you in the good days to come and they will come.”

The US leader also announced $100 million in new funding for humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza.

The announcement comes as many Palestinians feel overlooked and betrayed amid Washington’s strong support of Israel.

“It's unfair for Palestinian people,” Ms Salim said of the US's response so far to the conflict.

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3pm: Al Yasmeen – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: AS Hajez, Jesus Rosales, Khalifa Al Neyadi

3.30pm: Al Ferdous – Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 1,700m; Winner: Soukainah, Sebastien Martino, Jean-Claude Pecout

4pm: The Crown Prince Of Sharjah – Prestige (PA) Dh200,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: AF Thayer, Ray Dawson, Ernst Oertel

4.30pm: Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup – Handicap (TB) Dh200,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: George Villiers, Antonio Fresu, Bhupat Seemar

5pm: Palma Spring – Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 (D) 2,000m; Winner: Es Abu Mousa, Antonio Fresu, Abubakar Daud

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Pharaoh's curse

British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
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Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.

SM Town Live is on Friday, April 6 at Autism Rocks Arena, Dubai. Tickets are Dh375 at www.platinumlist.net

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Kolkata won by 31 runs

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Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994

Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers

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Rating: 3/5

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Abdul Jabar Qahraman was meeting supporters in his campaign office in the southern Afghan province of Helmand when a bomb hidden under a sofa exploded on Wednesday.

The blast in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah killed the Afghan election candidate and at least another three people, Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak told reporters. Another three were wounded, while three suspects were detained, he said.

The Taliban – which controls much of Helmand and has vowed to disrupt the October 20 parliamentary elections – claimed responsibility for the attack.

Mr Qahraman was at least the 10th candidate killed so far during the campaign season, and the second from Lashkar Gah this month. Another candidate, Saleh Mohammad Asikzai, was among eight people killed in a suicide attack last week. Most of the slain candidates were murdered in targeted assassinations, including Avtar Singh Khalsa, the first Afghan Sikh to run for the lower house of the parliament.

The same week the Taliban warned candidates to withdraw from the elections. On Wednesday the group issued fresh warnings, calling on educational workers to stop schools from being used as polling centres.

Updated: October 19, 2023, 9:22 AM`