Dozens of protesters yesterday demonstrated outside the Taipei office of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) against US support for Israel in the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas that has led to heavy civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.
“Free Palestine! Let Gaza live!” protesters chanted as they held placards with slogans against the Israeli military action in Gaza, urging the US to cease military support for Israel, as well as pictures of children killed in the Israeli offensive.
The protesters also placed red handprints on flags of the US and Israel to symbolize their belief the two countries are responsible for the bloodshed in Gaza.
Photo: CNA
“It has been more than 20 days since Israel launched its latest offensive on Gaza, leading to the deaths of more than 1,200 people and wounding more than 620, while, according to UN statistics, as many as 160,000 Palestinians have been displaced,” Taiwan Labor Party Vice Chairman Tang Shu (唐曙) said.
“The US not only firmly supports the Israeli massacre of Palestinians, but has also been providing US$3 billion a year in military assistance to Israel since 2006,” he said.
While US President Barack Obama says he feels saddened to see Palestinian civilians being killed, the US never withdraws its support for Israel, Tang said.
Photo: CNA
“On July 23, the US was the only country at a UN meeting that voted against launching an investigation on Israeli war crimes, meaning that the US approves of the killings in Gaza,” Tang said.
He condemned Israel for attacking a UN refugee facility despite receiving a clear warning from the UN.
“Israel does not care, because the US is backing it,” he said.
China Tide Association secretary-general Lin Sheng-chou (林聲洲) said that it was hard for him to imagine that a people who suffered from ethnic cleansing would now involve themselves in the same crime.
“What the Nazis did to the Jews shocked the world, triggering a worldwide anti-fascist movement,” Lin said.
“It is hard for me to imagine that the Jews are doing to Palestinians what the Nazis did to them during World War II, because of the Zionist movement,” Lin said.
Lin said Israel says that it has launched attacks on Gaza because it was being attacked by rockets fired by Hamas.
“However, the military forces of the two sides are not balanced. Israel is using a disproportional force to attack Gaza, harming mostly civilians and civilian facilities,” he said.
Tang said that if the US claims that it supports Israeli military action because Israel has the right to self-defense when rockets are flying into its territories, then “why doesn’t the rule of self-defense apply to Palestinians as well?”
At the end of the demonstration, AIT spokesperson Mark Zimmer came out to take a petition from the protesters.
A rally is being organized for outside the Israeli representative office in Taipei on Saturday evening and everyone who is concerned about what is going on in Gaza is welcome to attend, Tang said.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man
RSS