At the same time as Ehud Barak was ordering the army to start the bloody ground offensive against Gaza, some ten thousand protesters from all over Israel marched in Tel-Aviv in a massive demonstration against the war.
"One does not build an election campaign over the dead bodies of children!” shouted the protesters in Hebrew rhymes. “Orphans and widows are not election propaganda!”, “Olmert, Livni and Barak – war is no game!”’ “All cabinet ministers are war criminals!!” Barak, Barak, don’t worry – we shall meet you in The Hague!”, “Enough, enough – speak with Hamas!”
The written posters were similar. Some of them paraphrased Barak’s election slogans: “Barak is not friendly, he is a murderer!” (The original Barak slogan says: “Barak is not friendly, he is a leader!”) Also: “No to the Election War, 2009!” and “The six-Knesset-seat war!” – an allusion to the polls which showed that in the first days of the war Barak’s Labor Party has gained six prospective seats.
The demonstration took place after a fight with the police, which tried to prevent or at least limit it, arguing that they would not be able to stop right-wing rioters from attacking it. Among other things, the police demanded that the organizers undertake to prevent the hoisting of Palestinian flags. The organizers petitioned the High Court of Justice, which decided that the Palestinian flag is legal and ordered the police to protect the demonstration from rioters,
The demonstration was decided upon by Gush Shalom and 20 other peace organizations, including the Women’s Coalition for Peace, Anarchists Against the Wall, Hadash, the Alternative Information Center and New Profile. Meretz and Peace Now did not participate officially, but many of their members showed up. Some thousand Arab citizens from the north arrived in 20 buses straight from the big demonstration of the Arab public which had taken place in Sakhnin.
The organizers themselves were surprised by the large number of protesters. “A week after the start of Lebanon War II, we succeeded in mobilizing only 1000 demonstrators against it. The fact that today there came 10,000 proves that the opposition to the war is much stronger this time. If Barak goes on with his plans, public opinion may completely turn against the war in a few days.”
The giant Gush Shalom banner said in Hebrew, Arabic and English: “Stop Killing! Stop the Siege! Stop the occupation!” The slogan of the demonstration called for the end of the blockade and an immediate cease-fire.
On the day of the protest, the extreme Right mobilized their forces in order to break up the demonstration by force. The police made a great effort to prevent riots, and the one-mile march from Rabin Square to Cinematheque Square proceeded relatively quietly. However, when the protesters started to disperse, in accordance with the agreement with the police, a large crowd of rightists started to attack them. The police, which till then had been keeping the two camps apart, disappeared from the scene. The rioters then encircled the last of the protesters, harassing them, pushing them about and at a certain point started to besiege the Cinematheque building, where some of the last protesters had found refuge. They tried to break into the building, threatening to “finish off” the protesters, but at the last moment some police arrived and protected the entrance. The rioters stayed around for a long time.
ただただ信じられない。ＴＶで、闇の中、イスラエルの地上部隊が続々とガザに入っていくのを見つめながら、頭が揺れるのをどうしても抑えられない。大勢の人がひしめきあって暮らしているガザにイスラエル軍が激しい空爆を開始して８日、４００人以上が殺され、２０００人以上が怪我をし、すでにズタズタになっているインフラが徹底的に破壊された。そして今、イスラエル政府は地上侵攻を開始させた。
空爆が始まって３日目に、私は半ば強制的にガザから退去させられた。それからもずっとガザの友人たちとコンタクトをとりつづけているけれど、話をするたびに心がつぶれそうになる。ひとりひとりの声には、生々しい恐怖とどうしようもない絶望感があふれ、時にはあきらめのようなものさえ感じられる。生まれてこのかた、これほど心配でたまらなかったことはない。これほどまで自分が無力だと感じたことはない。
ガザで起こっていることについて、どうしても書かなければならない。今日まで書けなかったのは、あまりに直接的な感情が沸きかえっていて言葉にならなかったからだ。でも、これからは自分を叱りとばしてでも書いていく。ガザから出ることのできない人たちみんなに、たとえ私の声を届けるだけにしかならないとしても。
寺畑由実（てらはたゆみ）：2003年5月から、NPO法人「地球のステージ（本部・山形）」の現地駐在員として、パレスチナ・ガザ地区最南端の町ラファで、青少年を対象にした心理社会活動に従事。現在は、別の国際機関に所属し、活動を続けている。
寺畑さんのブログ（英語）：An Outsider's Inside-View of the Gaza Strip
IDF Ground Invasion Begins
by Yumi Terahata on Sat 03 Jan 2009 10:51 PM EET
I just can't believe it. I'm sitting in front of the TV, watching Israeli troops marching in darkness into the Gaza Strip, and I can't stop shaking my head. 8 days since the IDF began intensive airstrikes against densely-populated Gaza Strip, killing over 400 people, injuring over 2000, and destroying an already crippled infrastructure, the Israeli Government has now started a ground invasion.
Ever since I was taken out of Gaza on the third day of airstrikes, I've been in constant contact with my friends back there, and my heart breaks every time, hearing the raw fear, desperation, and even resignation in each of their voices. I've never felt so afraid and powerless in my life.
I have to start writing about what's been happening in Gaza. I haven't been able to, the emotions too raw for me to express in words. But it's time I forced myself to do so, if only to give voice to all the people I had to leave behind.
１７日付のイスラエルの有力紙イディオト・アハロノトは、イスラム武装組織を攻撃するために使う「人造スズメバチ」など、超微細の加工技術を駆使したナノテク兵器の開発をイスラエル軍が研究している、と報じた。ノーベル平和賞受賞者のペレス副首相が熱心で、オルメルト首相の了解を得て１５人の専門家を集め、研究を立ち上げたという。
ペレス副首相は、イスラエル軍が夏のレバノン紛争でゲリラ戦に苦しんだことを例に挙げ「（隠れた）自爆テロリストを１億ドルもする戦闘機で攻撃しても意味がない。（テロリストを確実に射止められる）小さな兵器が必要だ」と強調した。
研究している具体例として「住宅地の入り組んだ路地を遠隔操作で飛行させて敵に近づけ、爆破させるスズメバチほどの小さなロボット」「兵士が重い物を持ち上げたり、硬い物を破壊したりできる手袋や袖」「自爆テロ犯を遠くから察知できる小型センサー」などがある。この中には、３年以内に試作器を完成できるものがある、という。