Hamas is the Enemy of Palestine people for using them as human shield A crowd of about 10,000 has pledged its support in Sydney for Israel in a conflict it says has sparked open Jew hatred not seen since the 1930s. The Dudley Page Reserve in the eastern suburbs was a sea of blue and white, reflecting the Israeli flag colours, as the areas Jewish population showed its support on Sunday for Israels actions in the Gaza conflict. There was a heavy security presence, including riot police, the dog squad and private security guards, at the rally. Bags were searched on entry and plain-clothes security lined the reserves perimeter. Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Robert Goot told the crowd that while he deplored the loss of innocent lives, Hamass use of homes and mosques to launch operations and its use of human shields knew no bounds. He said Israels defence of its citizens had released an outpouring of antagonism ...and open Jew hatred, the likes of which have not been seen in Europe since the early 1930s. But what would the world have Israel do? he said. Israel, like any other responsible nation, must defend its citizens while taking care of innocents in harms way. No one would put up with it and nor should Israel. Mr Goot said Israel had taken unprecedented steps to minimise civilian casualties. In the crowd was Vic Alhadeff, who resigned from the NSW Community Relations Commission (CRC) after sending an email in defence of Israels role in the Gaza conflict. Critics questioned Mr Alhadeffs neutrality following the email, in which he accused Hamas of war crimes. It was sent in his role as chief executive of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies. Mr Alhadeff said he regretted offence caused by the email but stood by its contents. First of all, it was sent out in the first days of the war, but what I regret is that people took offence, he told AAP. There is nothing in that email that was not consistent with bipartisan Australian policy. He said Palestinians deserved a lot better than Hamas - the enemy of the Palestinian people. Mr Alhadeff said he stepped down from the CRC as the controversy became a distraction from the commissions work. A pro-Palestinian rally is to be held in Sydney on Sunday afternoon.
Posted on: Sun, 03 Aug 2014 04:11:21 +0000
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