ON the nationwide call of Left parties, hundreds of people gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on June 17, to express solidarity with the people of Palestine. The demonstration, held against the backdrop of escalating violence in Gaza and recent Israeli airstrikes on Iran, saw participation from students, youth, writers, artists, intellectuals, and representatives of civil society groups.
Addressing the demonstrators, M A Baby, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), strongly condemned Israel’s ongoing military actions, referring to it as a “rogue state” and labelling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “terrorist backed by US President Donald Trump.” Drawing parallels, he asked whether Israel’s attacks were any different from the recent terrorist assault in Pahalgam, Kashmir – both, he said, were “inhumane and unprovoked acts of terror.”
Baby further accused the Modi government of maintaining a “conspicuous silence” on Israel’s actions. He highlighted the growing defence ties between India and Israel, and said that drones manufactured in Hyderabad through a collaboration involving the Adani Group are being supplied to Israel and deployed against civilians in Palestine and Iran.
He said the two-nation solution, which was once the basis for resolving the Palestine issue, is now collapsing. He quoted Mahatma Gandhi who said, "Palestine belongs to the Arabs. Jews and Christians must live there together peacefully, as Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and others live together in India." In stark contrast, today Zionists are shooting Palestinian children, declaring them as future terrorists.
Baby clarified that the struggle of the Palestinian people is not a religious or Islamic war like the Hindutva forces would like to paint, but a genuine national liberation movement, similar to India's fight against British colonialism.
Solidarity Day with Palestine was observed across the country on June 17. Simultaneous demonstrations were held in major cities and state capitals, demanding an end to Israeli aggression and the immediate recognition of Palestine as a sovereign nation.
CPI general secretary D Raja, CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, and leaders from the CGPI, Forward Bloc, and RSP also addressed the gathering. They condemned US imperialism for backing Israel’s military attacks in West Asia and reiterated their support for the Palestinian struggle.
In a joint statement, the Left parties urged the Indian government to immediately stop all military cooperation with Israel and stand with the international community in recognising the rights of the Palestinian people.
The programme concluded with calls for peace, justice, and sovereignty for the Palestinian people.
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