The demonstration for Palestine, organized on August 9 by the Collective 06 for a just and lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis, took place between Avenue Gambetta and the Promenade des Anglais. Here’s a recap of what happened.
“Gaza, Gaza, Nice is with you”, “Israel kills the children of Palestine” and “We are all children of Gaza”, are some of the slogans from the demonstration, aimed at denouncing the genocide in Gaza. France’s lack of political will was chanted during the march: “Macron, Macron, what we want are sanctions.” The march started at Gambetta and continued along the Promenade des Anglais, across from Albert 1st park. On site, a fundraising initiative was launched, allowing for the purchase of food, drinks, keffiyehs, and caps to continue preparing the demonstrations each week.
“In October 2023, Israel’s strategy was to commit genocide. Meanwhile, France showed its complicity, its silence. Benjamin Netanyahu crossed French airspace several times, without ever being arrested. Two years later, France wants to recognize the Palestinian state after 60,000 people were killed,” warns Hager Barkous, president of the Friends of Palestine 06 collective. The law on the prevention and repression of the crime of genocide, signed in 1948, and then ratified (consent given to a legal text for which a State is responsible and commits to applying it, ed.) on August 1, 1950, obligates France to respect and apply it.
The Demands of Collective 06 for a just and lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis
“We demand a cease-fire, an end to the genocide, and its liberation (an end to the colonization of Palestinian territories by Israel, ed.). With current events, the famine in the Gaza Strip, we demand the immediate entry of humanitarian aid,” she denounces.
The Friends of Palestine 06 are part of the Collective 06 for a just and lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis, which includes about fifteen associations, unions, and political parties. According to the group’s leader, since October 2023, demonstrators have gathered or protested in Garibaldi or Masséna squares.
Alongside the demonstrations, the association organizes workshops and awareness booths. These workshops support the Palestinian cause through culture and symbols, such as the watermelon, the olive tree, zaatar (a traditional Middle Eastern spice, ed.), the keffiyeh… A ceramic painting workshop in the colors of Palestine is organized on August 10.
