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An emotional meeting between to rivers of demonstrators, one Israeli and one Palestinian, took place Saturday noon in the center of a-Ram. The two rivers came from different directions and united into one big demonstration against the monstrous wall that is about to cut off a-Ram from Jerusalem and from its environment. The drum band of a-Ram boy-scouts led the marchers with their beat. The Israelis started a spontaneous march when the Border Police stopped their buses and tried to prevent them from reaching the demonstration. They left their buses where they were and continued on foot in the blazing heat. The demonstration was organized by "Gush Shalom" and "Ta'ayush", on the initiative of Sirkhan Salaimeh, the mayor of a-Ram, who called on the Israeli public to support the 60 thousand inhabitants in their fight against the wall, which is out to destroy their lives. A-Ram is a center of commerce between Israel and the West Bank, and its isolation will kill its economy. "There is no life for Israel without life for Palestine. There is no existence for Israel without existence for Palestine. There is no security for Israel without security for Palestine!" Gush Shalom activist Uri Avnery declared. He spoke from a bloc of concrete put in place in preparation for the wall. With him spoke Knesset members Barakeh and Tibi. Leena Delasheh of Ta'ayush called: "We, Israelis and Palestinians, are united in our struggle until the wall will fall, here and everywhere!" The demonstrators carried posters saying "Peace, Not Separation!", "First of All - the Wall must Fall!", "They choke a-Ram!", "A Prison for the Palestinians, a Ghetto for the Jews!" Before and after the demonstration, the Israelis toured the path of the wall in the north of Jerusalem. "Until now I thought that it is terrible," a demonstrator from Haifa said, "Now I know that it is far more terrible!" Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall1.jpg The scout band leading the march Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall5.jpg Palestinian and Israeli women at the demonstration Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall3.jpg The mayor, Sirkhan Saleimah, speaking Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall4.jpg The monster is coming near: new section of the wall between a-Ram Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall2.jpg A demonstrator with the two-flags poster Image: images/monster_wall/monster_wall6.jpg . Israelis and Palestinians in the first row. Among them: MKs Barakeh and Tibi. Previous Gush Shalom actions . |
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