Reacting to last weekend’s rash of violence in Israel, a group of several hundred Palestinian sympathizers rallied together last Monday to demonstrate in front of the Wilshire Boulevard offices of the Consulate General of the State of Israel, Los Angeles.
Organized by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the demonstration, which began at noon on Monday and lasted for several hours, attracted people upset over the death of some 50 Palestinians in this week’s riots. They expressed their frustration and anger by carrying signs, passing out literature and stepping on the Israeli flag.
The ADC, the nation’s largest Arab-American organization, followed up its local demonstration with a protest outside of the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday. In a press release, the ADC condemned the Israeli government for the fallout following Ariel Sharon’s visit to East Jerusalem.Meanwhile, at L.A.’s Israeli consulate, employees report that the local protest did not disrupt their work day.
“Everybody in a democratic country has the right to demonstrate,” said Meirav Eilon Shahar, consul for communications and public relations. “We only wish it was the same in Israel, that people would have demonstrated in a peaceful, quiet way.” Consular officials said they expected another large protest on Friday, Oct. 6. Said Zvi Vapni, deputy consul general, “It’s not over.”
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