On the afternoon of Saturday June 10, CAPJPO-EuroPalestine organized a rally at the Fontaine des Innocents in downtown Paris to demand the release of Walid Daqqah and the 5,000 Palestinian political prisoners.
At the beginning of this mobilization, Olivia Zémor, the president of EuroPalestine, intervened, highlighting the various forms of colonial violence escalating against the Palestinian people. In particular, she denounced the attacks against the people of the village of Nabi Saleh, in particular the murder of Mohammed Tamimi — just 2 and a half years old — and the imprisonment of two teenagers.
The crowd chanted: “Free the resistance fighters, end the occupation” and “What are we waiting for? Arm the Palestinian resistance fighters!” Meanwhile, various interventions highlighted the situation in the prisons of the Israeli occupation.
First, a member of EuroPalestine spoke, denouncing the policy of administrative detention, imprisonment without charge or trial, which has been practiced massively against the Palestinian people since the British mandate. Today, 1083 Palestinians are currently subject to these detention orders and the Palestinian prisoners’ movement has announced the launch of a collective hunger strike on June 18 against the policy, which was first introduced to Palestine by the British colonial mandate before being adopted by the Zionist regime.
Another young Palestinian spoke, underlining the importance of the campaign for the release of Georges Abdallah, Lebanese communist and struggler for the liberation of Palestine, who has been imprisoned in France since 1984 and eligible for release since 1999. While he has become one of the longest-held political prisoners in Europe, he has just filed a ninth request for his release. The activist called for stronger, broader action for his liberation, in particular by participating in the demonstration on June 18 from Ménilmontant, organized by the Unitary Campaign for the Liberation of Georges Abdallah.
Finally, a member of Samidoun Paris Banlieue spoke about the international campaign for the release of Walid Daqqah:
Today, we would like to tell you about one prisoner in particular who has languished in Israeli colonial prisons for 37 years. This man is called Walid Daqqah.
Walid Daqqah is an internationally renowned writer and an emblematic prisoner of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
Like his 5,000 fellow Palestinian prisoners, he represents the spearhead of Palestinian resistance. Like his comrades and compatriots, he sacrificed so greatly to defend his people and his land against colonialism and imperialism.
But today, we are talking about this above all because Walid Daqqah is seriously ill. Walid Daqqah needs special care and serious support! Instead, the Israeli occupation denies his release and practices a policy of medical negligence. There are hundreds of political prisoners who are sick and to whom Israel refuses treatment and waits to see them die, like Nasser Abu Hmeid, Saadia Farajallah and Khader Adnan.
And so all of us who are present here have a duty to demand the immediate release of the 5,000 Palestinian prisoners detained by the Israeli occupation, as well as the release of Georges Abdallah, who has been imprisoned in France since 1984 and eligible for release since 1999. We must demand his release and participate in the June 18 demonstration!
Because supporting the Palestinian prisoners is supporting the resistance, supporting the liberation of Palestine, of all of Palestine, from the river to the sea!
We would like to end with these few words:
Glory to the Palestinian resistance
Glory to the martyrs
Freedom for Walid Daqqah, Georges Abdallah and all the Palestinian prisoners!
Vietnam has won, Algeria has won, Palestine will win!
The rally ended by stressing the importance of campaigns to boycott Israel and commending the work carried out by Palestine Action in Britain, in particular the siege on the Israeli arms factory owned and operated by Elbit Systems in Leicester since 1 May.
Samidoun Paris Banlieue thanks and supports CAPJPO-EuroPalestine for organizing this gathering. Everywhere, actions are multiplying to build international solidarity with Walid Daqqah, Georges Abdallah and all the 5,000 men, women and children unjustly detained by the Israeli occupation. Sunday, June 18 from 2 p.m. at the Ménilmontant metro in Paris, let’s come in numbers to the demonstration for the release of Georges Abdallah!
