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LMNOP Palestine resource list: http://www.webwm.com/LMNOP/palestine.htm ---------------------------------------- http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2002/04/06/MN23975.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Saturday, April 6, 2002 (SF Chronicle) Dueling protests over Mideast action/Pro-Palestinian demonstrators march to Israeli Consulate in S.F., meet opposition Suzanne Herel, Chronicle Staff Writer Montgomery Street outside the Israeli Consulate morphed into a demilitarized zone yesterday afternoon as two camps totaling nearly 1,000 protesters -- all calling for peace in the Middle East -- stood on either side and taunted each other. The gathering, dotted with Israeli and Palestinian flags, eerily reflected the situation thousands of miles away. Adding to the mood were fighter planes, in the area for Giants' opening day, which roared above the pro-Palestinian demonstrators as they prepared to walk from the Civic Center to the Financial District around 1 p.m. Shouting such slogans as "One, two, three, four, we don't want your racist war" and "Free Palestine," hundreds of marchers wound through downtown for about half an hour, stopping traffic and surprising passers-by. When they reached the consulate -- which had been closed for the event -- the police-escorted protesters were greeted by an equally large pro-Israel contingent. In the first moments, as police on horse and foot positioned themselves to keep the two groups apart, it appeared a fight might erupt. But the protest was peaceful, and police made no arrests. The pro-Israel group had assembled after they received word of the pro-Palestine rally, organizers said. "Traditionally, the Jewish community doesn't respond in this way," said Ami Nahshon, executive vice president of the Jewish Federation of the Greater East Bay. "But with the level of hate, and the anti-Israel rhetoric and vandalism, we thought it was time to show the Jewish community is united behind Israel." Yossi Amrani, consul general for Israel for the Pacific Northwest region, had to remain in the consulate while it was closed. Reached by phone, he said he was encouraged by the support of the Jewish community. Of the pro-Palestine protesters, he said, "It is frightening, disturbing, this message that is coming from people who live in the Bay Area." People of Jewish descent weren't confined to the pro-Israel side of the street. Members of a group called Jewish Voice for Peace marched with those supporting the Palestinians. "A lot of people think that the Jewish community is unified on this issue," said Alan Gutride, 32, a San Francisco lawyer. "We're trying to break that image of unanimity that doesn't exist." The protesters represented a number of ethnicities and creeds -- even dogs carried small flags in their collars, and parents pushed baby strollers through the crowd. Ahmed Albender, 33, of San Jose, took over the pro-Palestine megaphone at one point to express his disgust at the United States' support of Israel. "My hands are contaminated with the bloodshed of the Palestinian people because I pay taxes," said Albender, a Muslim who moved here 11 years ago from Iraq. Palestine supporter Annie Hallatt, 59, a mask maker from Berkeley, dressed in a floor-length black veil topped by the head of a black Madonna -- fashioned, she said, in the tradition of Isis. Speaking of such iconic heads, she said: "It's time for them to come out and look after peace and justice." Hallatt drifted silently through the crowd holding a sign that read, "Stop the Killing." While she was among pro-Israelis, someone slipped a small Israeli flag onto her back, which was promptly removed when the spooky visage returned to the other side of the street. ____________________ E-mail Suzanne Herel at [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------- Copyright 2002 SF Chronicle http://www.sfgate.com ===== Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace. Weekly peace walks around Lake Merritt in Oakland. Starts & ends at the colonnade between Grand & Lakeshore Avenues, 3 P.M., every Sunday. Info: (510)763-8712, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> or http://www.webwm.com/LMNOP __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax http://taxes.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
