Demonstrators in Bern are calling for solidarity with Palestine.
Published: Saturday, Oct 28th 2023, 14:50
Updated At: Sunday, Oct 29th 2023, 01:53
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More than a thousand demonstrators showed their solidarity with the people in the Palestinian territories on Saturday in Bern. The Palestine Group Bern had called for the approved rally in front of the Federal Palace.
We are calling for an immediate ceasefire and an end to the genocide. The siege must come to an end.
Flags of Palestine were waved and hand-painted banners displayed slogans such as "Stop War" and "Free Palestine". Another banner posed the question, "Do human rights apply to Palestinians?" The demonstration was a call for an end to the violence and for the recognition of Palestinian rights.
Numerous police officers observed the event, some of them in combat gear, as reported by a correspondent of the news agency Keystone-SDA. At the edge of the demonstration, there were occasional heated exchanges of words.
Police officers took several people away who had been at the edge of the federal square. The background was initially unclear.
"Abolish Apartheid".
In his speech, former Green National Councilor Geri Müller said that the background of all violence is apartheid, which must be abolished. The president of the Switzerland-Palestine Society rejected the accusation that the slogan "From the river to the sea, Palestine must be free" is anti-Semitic.
The expression is meant to convey that Palestinians could live freely in the area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. The accusation of anti-Semitism is raised to silence critics.
On Saturday, other Swiss cities also held demonstrations to protest the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Last weekend, Bern, Zurich, and Basel had not allowed any demonstrations related to the Middle East, citing concerns about potential personal and property damage.
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