Massive Durban march in support of Palestinians
Regional-Israel, Politics, 9/1/2001

The South African city of Durban yesterday witnessed a mass march in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

They carried banners condemning Israeli practices and acts of aggression on the Palestinian people and called for supporting the legitimate rights of the Palestinians to establish their independent state.

Some 40,000 people from the participants of the World Conference against Racism as well as South African citizens took part in the March.

Washington, currently Israel's only backer on the world arena, fears the conference would equate Zionism and Israel with racism and apartheid.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell decided against attending when the United States and Israel objected the language proposed by Arab and Islamic nations.

Instead, Washington said on Wednesday it would send a middle-ranking State Department official to Durban to try to amend the language on Israel, but would not necessarily take its seat at the opening plenary today.

The conference takes place against a backdrop of intensifying Israeli brutality against Palestinians in the occupied territories.

About 700 people, mostly Palestinian civilians and children have been killed since last September.

The draft UN race declaration does not link Zionism with racism, but it says: "Foreign occupation founded on settlements is a new kind of apartheid, a crime against humanity."

The draft document also expresses "deep concern about practices of racial discrimination against the Palestinians as well as other inhabitants of the Arab occupied territories."

The document also 3 refers to "ethnic cleansing of the Arab population of Palestine."

Previous Stories:
  Anti-racism conference probes condemning Israel's separation policies in occupied lands   (8/29/2001)
  OIC Condemns Assassination of FPLP Leader   (8/28/2001)
  Arab participation in Durban conference   (8/28/2001)

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