Culture Society, Identity and Belonging
Thousands of Palestinians took to streets across Gaza on Tuesday and Wednesday in the enclave’s largest demonstrations since the war began.
Their banners showed the desperation of a population facing renewed Israeli bombardment and a continuing blockade on food, fuel and medicine.
Messages included “stop the war”, “we want to live” and most notably “Hamas out”.
The militant group, whose gunmen dispersed some of the protests, is under continuing pressure from Israel to leave Gaza and from the US to demilitarise.
But it rarely faces public dissent from its own population, who fear its violent record of repression.
Polling data on support for Hamas in Gaza over the past year has varied widely, ranging from 35 to 5 per cent.
No elections have been held in the Strip (or the West Bank) since 2006, meaning the overwhelming majority of Gaza’s young population have never had a vote.
Photo credits: AFP via Getty Images
