Demonstrators called for a ‘globalized intifada.’ It’s not difficult to imagine what that would look like.
By Pesach Benson, United With Israel
A pro-Palestinian rally in Brooklyn on Saturday devolved into inflammatory rhetoric and calls for violence against not just Israelis, but Jews around the world.
Several hundred protesters marched under banners stating, “Globalize the intifada,” “Zionism is terrorism,” and “We will free Palestine within our lifetime.”
Demonstrators also chanted slogans such as “There is only one solution, intifada revolution,” “If we don’t get no justice, then they don’t get no peace,” “Mobilize the intifada,” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
The slogan, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” refers to the entire land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea being liberated from the Jews. In 2020, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich), who is of Palestinian descent, sparked controversy for retweeting that slogan.
In a video posted on Twitter but subsequently removed, demonstrators also chanted, “We don’t want no two states, we want all of it.”
Saturday’s demonstration was organized by “Within Our Lifetime – United For Palestine.” Its web site describes the group as a Palestinian-led organization in the New York area.
The demonstrators also picketed the offices of New York Attorney General Letitia James, calling on her to investigate and revoke the non-profit tax-exempt status of charities supporting Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria. Tlaib and other Democratic lawmakers recently called on Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to strip this tax-exempt status from those charities, specifically naming the Central Fund of Israel and American Friends of Beit El.
The word intifada, literally means “shaking off” in Arabic and refers to an uprising or rebellion.
During the Second Intifada of 2001-2005, more than 1,000 Israelis and 64 foreigners were killed in Palestinian suicide bombings, shootings and stabbings. Another 8,000 were injured in those attacks. Israel responded to the wave of terror by launching Operation Defensive Shield and building the security barrier in Judea and Samaria.
In more recent years, smaller waves of Palestinian stabbing and car-ramming attacks against Israelis were referred to as the knife intifada and car intifada.
It’s not difficult to imagine what a “globalized intifada” would look like for American Jews. Anti-Semitism targeting Jews in North America and Europe rose sharply in 2021 during the Gaza crisis of May. Anti-Semitism watchdogs reported an alarming rise in assaults, rhetoric and vandalism against Jews by Left-wing Palestinian supporters and Right-wing racists.