Tucson, AZ – On July 11 more than 60 people protested Israel’s war of terror against the Palestinian people. Those gathered demanded justice and the return home to Tampa, Florida of Palestinian American teen-ager Tariq Khdeir, recently beaten by Israeli police until he blacked out.

The protest drew dozens of Arab Americans and their allies holding signs reading, “Stop Israeli genocide” and “Stop U.S. funding of Israel”. Supporters honked as they drove through Tucson’s downtown. People chanted, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, “Free, free, Palestine”, and “Justice for Tariq, Justice for Palestine”. Students for Justice in Palestine organized the emergency action.

Jim Byrne, one of the coordinators of the action said, “People in Tucson and in hundreds of cities worldwide are out on the streets to demonstrate against Israel and the US government giving Israel $3 billion a year. The Palestinian people are our brothers and sisters and we support them in their struggle for peace and independence. The peoples of the world are telling Israel and the White House: “We do not support this Zionist violence!””

Byrne continued, “Here in Arizona, we see the U.S. copying Israel’s practices, with building a giant wall and the militarization of the US-Mexico border. The indigenous and Chicano peoples of this land are suffering in similar ways. From Arizona to Palestine, we are fighting the same struggle.”

Activists present at the rally also brought up the importance of solidarity with Rasmea Odeh, the 67 year-old Palestinian American activist who goes on trial in Detroit, September 8. Odeh, a victim of torture at the hands of the Israeli military in 1969, is currently facing trumped up charges as part of the ongoing US government’s repression of anti-war activists. Activists distributed flyers and gathered petition signatures to drop the charges against Rasmea Odeh.

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