Maung Zarni, the Burmese dissident in exile, is a brilliant & acerbic polemicist. This is his post on the land grabs of Rohingya property in Arakan state after they fled from genocide:

“For-Profit-Genocide: Myanmar committed “ethnic cleansing” or more genocidal deportation of 700,000 Rohingyas & is going to let cronies & companies work 70,000 acres of fertile agricultural land for profit! Aung San Suu Kyi’s Team calls this “sustainable development”.”

It seems to me useful to post photos from protests around the world to show the scope & breadth of support for Palestinians & to hearten others to call protests–but also to let Palestinians know they don’t stand alone anymore. It’s too hard for those on the front lines of these brutal but historic freedom struggles to feel that no one in the world gives a damn that they’re suffering & dying. So if nobody raises hell, or even if you do, I’ll keep posting them.

This Syrian girl from Eastern Ghouta died late February while saving her baby sister from Russian & Syrian carpet bombing. At least 127 children were among the 510 killed in the bombing campaign. In confirming its authenticity, it appears that only Arab publications & bloggers circulated this very powerful photo. Language is an issue when English-speakers expect everyone to communicate in English, But the question arises: why are Arab voices on Syria, in fact, why are Syrian voices drowned out in deference to white hired propagandists who’ve spent a total of several weeks in Syria embedded with the Syrian army? The white supremacy & colonial mentality of that should stick out like a sore thumb & shame all those who’ve been taken in, especially when the rhetoric is indistinguishable from Zionist rhetoric against Palestinians.

(Photo from several Arab sources including QNS 24×7 on FB)

Bristol, England stands with Palestinians: Muslims play an important role in Palestinian solidarity around the world. Arab or Muslim regimes are often berated for standing with Israel rather than Palestinians but that is only true of the regimes, not the populations of those countries who in their majority support the Palestinian freedom struggle. The regimes don’t have the same interests as working people. And anyway, Palestinians are not all Muslims; there are many Christians among them & no one chides governments run by “Christians” like Trump, Macron, or May. It can be safely said that when it comes to the oppressed, most governments are run by godless criminals.

(Photo from Palestine Observer on Twitter)

London stands with Palestinians: British activists have a particular responsibility & commitment to Palestinians because of the role British colonialism played in Palestine’s partition & in helping set up a Zionist state. The legacy of British colonialism will only be undone when a democratic, secular state is created where Palestinians & Jews can live as peers.

(Photo from Days of Palestine on Twitter)

Dhaka, Bangladesh stands with Palestinians: this is what is called a “small but spirited” protest. Bigger is always better when it comes to standing with the oppressed. But small protests can never be underestimated or called off because we never know who we reach & how deeply they will be affected. On a personal note, it was one Palestinian protesting the 1967 Six-Day War that began my life-long commitment to the Palestinian freedom struggle. Even if we stand alone, we trust that others will be curious enough to investigate & may also become champions of Palestinians. Solidarity & respect for these protesters in Dhaka.

(Photo via Looken Dey)

Antisemitism these days isn’t quite like it was up to the holocaust. But it’s still repugnant as hell. This mental habit of writing off an entire group of people based on stereotypes is a real piece of work & it damn sure has no place in transformational politics. When I came of age in politics, some of my best teachers were Jews & internationalists. Jews were a disproportionate number of progressive activists because of their own history of persecution which was brutal. They weren’t obsessed with being Jewish because their vision of humanity was universal. If you think for one moment you can trash Jews in any way on my wall, you’re dead wrong. For no reason I understand, not only my best teachers but my most beloved friends have been Jewish & it would be unthinkable I would ever demean their ancestry in any way. Not just because I love & admire them but because they are/were wonderful people. So please don’t make me censor your comments. That’s a bottom line on my wall regarding any ethnic or religious group. Learn to respect them or keep your damn mouth shut.

Galway, Ireland stands with Palestinians & has an active solidarity movement who have drawn the connections between their own struggle against English colonialism & the Palestinian struggle against Zionist colonialism, apartheid, genocide.

(Photo from Treasa Ní Cheannabháin)

Bethlehem, West Bank stands with Gaza: we cannot forget the protests in the occupied West Bank in concert with the Great Return March & protests against the US embassy move to Jerusalem. Today in Beit El, West Bank, Israeli occupying troops fired rubber bullets, live ammo, & deployed drones equipped with tear gas on unarmed protesters, just as they are doing in Gaza. One 20-year old protester said “The suffering of people in Gaza, Jerusalem & ‘48 areas is the suffering of everyone. The pain is for the whole of Palestine.”

Meanwhile, at the UN Security Council, Israeli UN ambassador Danny Danon accused Hamas of using protesters as human shields. “They are not protestors,” he said but “a mob that carries explosives & sometimes you cannot differentiate between terrorists & the people around them.” The line being advanced by Israel & all its apologists & stooges is that Israel cannot be criticized for using live fire on unarmed protesters because Hamas is to blame.

(Photo from AbdelKarim Alkahlout on Twitter)

Tel Aviv stands with Palestinians. Many Jews understand the history of their own persecution very well & want to be part of the greater movement against racism, supremacy, & colonialism, not separated from it like Zionists by master race ideology. They have always played a central role in opposing Zionism & will be a central part of forging a democratic, secular state where Palestinians & Jews can live as brothers & sisters.

(Photo from Simone Zimmerman on Twitter)