TEL AVIV—“Accept the deal, end the war, out of Gaza!” Thousands of placards carrying this message, in both Hebrew and Arabic, were distributed last weekend in the weekly anti-government protests in cities throughout Israel.
Some looked with suspicion at these signs, as they preferred sticking to the popular “Deal now!” signs. But others, many others, approached the activists of Standing Together who were handing out these purple bilingual signs and asked to carry them, too.
This reflects a changing attitude among many within the anti-Netanyauh protest movement—especially as our government expands its deadly war into Lebanon—with a wing that develops towards an openly anti-war message.
Almost a year has passed since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas brutally attacked civilian towns and villages inside Israel, next to the Gaza Strip, and our government responded with an even more brutal war.
The death toll in the Gaza Strip exceeds 40,000 casualties—among them more than 15,000 children—and as the lack of food and basic medical supplies continues to grow, a humanitarian catastrophe unfolds.
As the war prolonged, there has been growing discontent towards Netanyahu’s government. In all serious public opinion polls, Netanyahu’s party and its coalition allies—who currently have a 64-seat majority in Israel’s 120-seat Knesset (parliament)—are set to lose their parliamentary majority, with recent polls suggesting that they are expected to win merely 52 seats.
Another public opinion poll by i24news shows that there is now a 52% majority that supports a hostage release deal that includes ending the war and a complete withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza.
The poll did not yet take into account changes in opinion sparked by the heavy bombardment and pending ground invasion of Lebanon.
But simply demanding a hostage deal to end the war, while urgent and necessary, is not sufficient.
Not only Netanyahu but also those set on replacing him seem to believe that solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not a burning necessity and that the decades-long military rule over millions of Palestinians in the Occupied Territories, who are devoid of citizenship and denied basic rights, is something that can be maintained indefinitely into the future.
The bankruptcy of this idea became evident following Oct. 7. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict cannot be “managed.” This is merely a recipe for more October 7s, for more wars, aggression, and escalations that will cause the loss of many innocent lives.
Rather, what is needed is to recognize the basic truth: There are millions of Palestinians in this country; none of them are going anywhere. And there are millions of Jews in this country; none of them are going anywhere.
The only hope for safety and security lies in an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement that will end the occupation, allow the Palestinian people their right to national self-determination in an independent state alongside Israel, and respect the rights of both peoples to live in freedom, justice, and independence.
This perspective is being presented within the mass anti-government protest movement by the activists of Standing Together—the leading grassroots movement that organizes and mobilizes Jewish and Palestinian citizens of Israel to campaign for peace, equality, and social justice.
Our interventions inside the protests—including such media stunts as unfurling a huge banner at the heart of the mass anti-Netanyahu rally in Tel-Aviv that reads “Out of Gaza!” to a cheering crowd—is our way to initiate a conversation, argue for our views, and change the political weather within the protest movement.
This work received expressions of solidarity by trade unions abroad, including in Britain. The Fire Brigades Union (FBU), in its recent annual conference held in Blackpool, adopted a policy statement submitted by the union’s executive committee, stating that FBU “supports the small but growing movement in Israel, opposing the war and calling for a just, peaceful and democratic solution addressing the rights of the Palestinian people.
“The union pays tribute to those in Israel, such as Standing Together, who fight against racism and discrimination and seek to build dialogue and unity between Palestinians and Jews. Despite the current isolation of such initiatives, they offer a source of hope for the future.”
Similarly, the train drivers’ union ASLEF passed a resolution at its recent conference in Manchester to “support those voices on both sides who have shown tremendous courage in promoting peace and dialogue and a just settlement and a democratic solution, such as Standing Together, a joint Palestinian-Israeli social movement, which is organizing anti-racist, anti-war, and solidarity activity within Israeli society.”
At a time in which our own government has launched an all-out war against Lebanon, we remember that international solidarity is a weapon in the hands of the working people of the world.
The solidarity of the trade unions with the peace movement and the solidarity of people across borders who share mutual interests that stand in opposition to the interests of their respective governments. Solidarity can overcome injustice, and it will.
As with all news-analytical and op-ed articles published by People’s World, the views reflected here are those of the author.
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