Israelis protest Gaza blockade

Aljazeera.net

The protest in Tel Aviv marked the first anniversary of Israel's war on Gaza [AFP] Hundreds of Israelis have rallied in central Tel Aviv to protest against the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip. Israeli Arab and Jewish activists marched on Saturday in the city's Rabin square, chanting slogans and waving signs calling for "Freedom and Justice in Gaza". The protesters demanded Israel end the blockade, deeming its continuation a "war crime", the AFP news agency reported. The Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007 when Hamas seized power in the territory. String of demonstrations Hundreds of international protesters held a similar demonstration on Thursday on both sides of an Israeli border crossing to the Palestinian territory. The Erez crossing is the main entry and exit point to and from Gaza used by medical patients, journalists, diplomats and aid groups. in depth The events coincide with the one-year anniversary of Israel's 22-day war on Gaza which left about 1,300 Palestinians dead. Thirteen Israelis also died in the clashes. A further 100,000 Gazan residents were left homeless in the wake of the Israeli onslaught. A UN-sponsored report, known as the Goldstone report, has called on both Israel and Hamas to investigate accusations of human-rights violations committed during the conflict in Gaza. Most of the criticism in the Goldstone report was directed towards Israel. It concluded that Israel had used disproportionate force and had deliberately targeted Gaza civilians, using them as human shields, while destroying civilian infrastructure.