Typically, a small anti-war demonstration would not be front-page news unless it happened somewhere like Moscow, where few dare openly to oppose the Kremlin’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine.
But in war-torn Gaza, the stakes would be even higher. Even before the current conflict, Hamas responded to any criticism of its misrule with brutal repression and torture. Yet on March 25, hundreds of people took to the streets in Beit Lahiya (northern Gaza) to protest not only against the war, but against Hamas. With chants of “stop war,” “Hamas out,” “Hamas terrorists,” the demonstrators sent exactly the right message: For the war to end, Hamas — which started it — must be removed from power.
Nor were the Beit Lahiya protesters alone. As news and videos of this extraordinary event spread on social media, similar spontaneous demonstrations erupted elsewhere in Gaza, first in Jabalia and Khan Yunis, and then in Shejaiya, one of the enclave’s largest communities. While most of the protesters refused to identify themselves by name to reporters, they nonetheless showed their faces.
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