Mass rally in Cuba demands an end to the genocide in Palestine (+ Photos)

Havana, Oct. 9 -More than 100,000 residents of the capital, representing the Cuban people, today demanded an end to the Israeli genocide in Palestine during a mass rally at the José Martí Anti-Imperialist Tribune, led by President Miguel Díaz-Canel.

The event was also attended by senior Cuban government officials, the chargé d'affaires of the Palestinian Embassy in Havana, Majed Abu Al Hawa, young Palestinians studying at universities on the Caribbean island, and representatives of Cuban civil society organizations.

From the stage in front of the U.S. Embassy, ??speakers denounced the brutal Israeli offensive, while audiovisual testimonies were projected from members of the Palestinian freedom flotillas—participants in the Global Summit—who were assaulted and kidnapped on the high seas by the Israeli army while attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.

A trio of Palestinian students expressed, through songs and poetry, his outrage at the deaths of more than 67,000 people and over 200,000 wounded since the Israeli army intensified its aggression in disproportionate response to the incursion of Hamas forces into Israeli territory on 7 October 2023.

Abdalah Samir, one of the students, thanked Cuba for its unconditional support for Palestine, despite the historical challenges the island has faced, including the intensified blockade imposed by the United States. "Despite our own tragedies, Palestine stands shoulder to shoulder with Cuba, because Cuba's example is a hope for our people," he stated.

He also expressed solidarity with the brave people of Venezuela, who are suffering threats and aggression from the United States in its quest to seize oil and other natural resources. He also paid tribute to activists around the world who challenge Zionism, fascism, and imperialism, and who risk their lives to bring aid to Gaza.

Quoting the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, he recalled that “Latin American and global unity is the guarantee of sovereignty.” He added: “Defeating Zionism means doing justice to the Palestinian people and also liberating the Jewish people.”

“The people fight for the land, social justice, human dignity, and their own destiny. The will of the people is stronger than lethal weapons,” he emphasized.

Razan Malah recounted the trauma of her sister's death and the Israeli army's siege against her family. “It is the sacrifice, the courage, and the existence of a Palestinian people willing to lose everything—even their lives—to defend what is right,” she said with a faltering voice.

Meanwhile, pioneer Sabrina Padín, a student at the Nicolás Estévez Elementary School in the capital's Plaza de la Revolución municipality, addressed her “fellow Palestinian pioneers,” whose schools are in ruins and whose families are hiding to survive.

The pioneer lamented that many Palestinian children today live amid the roar of drones and the explosion of bombs.

Norma Goicochea, president of the Cuban Association of the United Nations, strongly condemned "the genocide and extermination that Israel commits against the Palestinian people," rejecting the impunity with which the occupying forces act.

The second secretary of the Union of Young Communists, Yaliel Cobo, denounced the "historical complicity of the United States, the supposed champion of democracy, which today feels not the slightest remorse for the genocide in Gaza, where more than 67,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have died."

He added that Washington tries to disguise its colonizing intentions with hypocritical rhetoric about human rights. Cobo also recalled Ernesto Che Guevara's historic visit to Gaza on June 18, 1959, who embodied the spirit of struggle for the freedom of the oppressed peoples. "Always be capable," he said, quoting Che Guevara, "of standing on the side of those who suffer."

Meanwhile, it was reported today that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas welcomed the first phase of an agreement aimed at ending the Israeli aggression against Gaza. The pact includes a prisoner exchange, a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the entry of humanitarian aid.

In a statement, Abbas expressed his hope that these efforts will constitute a prelude to reaching a permanent political solution that will lead to the end of the Israeli occupation and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state along the borders of June 4, 1967. (Text and photos: PL)