Today, tens of thousands of Palestinians have headed towards the Israeli fence in Gaza to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Great March of Return.
At the time of publication, two Palestinians had been killed, and many more wounded by Israeli fire.
March 30 also marks Palestinian Land Day, which commemorates a 1976 decision by the Israeli government to expropriate thousands of hectares of Arab-owned land in the Galilee region north of Israel.
One year ago, Palestinians in Gaza launched a series of weekly protests along the Israeli border, in which thousands of demonstrators have gathered every Friday to call for their rights, and an end to a grinding blockade imposed on the territory since 2007. However, after 52 weeks of regular protests, the situation in Gaza seems to have only worsened.
The Great March of Return was initially thought up by young Gazans with a vision to shift the dynamics in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The idea was to gather hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, who would cross into Israel in a non-violent march, demanding their right of return to their ancestors’ homes and the right to live side by side with Israelis.
Hamas, however, which has led the march since day one, saw the protests as a way to place pressure on Israel and the international community to lift the blockade. The idea of crossing into Israel was ruled out. Other Palestinian activists and thinkers supported the group’s strategy.
Nevertheless, Hamas understood the need for the demonstrations to be non-violent. At first, Gaza’s internal ministry deployed its security officers among the crowd to keep order.
Activists who believed that Israel would not use excessive force against peaceful protestors were gravely mistaken. On the very first day, 15 Palestinians were shot dead and more than 700 were wounded.
As the protests became a weekly event, Israel has continued targeting the protesters using live fire, explosive bullets, tear gas and nerve gas. The total number of Palestinians killed since the start of the Great March of Return, so far, is 275 including 51 children. Around 29,000 have been injured, including more than 7,000 wounded by live fire.
More than 136 have had to undergo amputations and dozens have been paralyzed after being intentionally shot in the spine by Israeli snipers. Israel has never even tried using water cannon or other non-lethal crowd-dispersal methods. Three paramedics have been killed and 670 injured in the protests, while two journalists have lost their lives and dozens more have been hospitalised.
Midway through the protests last year, faced with continued state-sanctioned Israeli violence, protesters began burning tyres, and dispatching incendiary balloons and kites into southern Israel. The hope was that these steps would put pressure on the Israeli government to alleviate its crippling blockade. Despite the efforts of the United Nations and Egypt, just days ago Israel rejected Palestinian demands.
Many residents of southern Israel, meanwhile, have placed pressure on their government to bomb Gaza instead of alleviating its suffering. The Israeli government has been better disposed to the option of war rather than that of ending the blockade. Indeed, in recent months, several attacks have been made on the Gaza Strip.
The March of Return protests have now become an expression of Gaza’s political, humanitarian and social problems. On any given week, the number of demonstrators has corresponded with the humiliations the Strip’s people have experienced. When The Trump administration relocated the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on Monday May 14 last year, over 30,000 Palestinians took to the borders to protest the move. 52 Palestinians were killed, and over 2,400 were injured.
International solidarity with the protests hasn’t reached the level that Gaza’s activists hoped for. What solidarity there has been has largely related to Israel’s violence against protesters than in favour of their aims.
Israel has seized every opportunity to put forward the narrative that Hamas is using the demonstrations as a cover to carry out terrorist attacks. These absurd claims still find their way into some corners of a western media that has largely ignored the reasons why so many Gazans are risking their lives and limbs every week.
Combined with inertia from the rest of the international community, the US’s actions with regard to Palestine have emboldened Israel. It now acts with impunity, in its violence against protesters and in its collective punishment of more than two million Gazans, via the 12-year blockade.
When asked why they take part in the demonstrations, in spite of the dangers, their response is often that a quick death is better than the slow one they are experiencing under the blockade.
However, in the face of international apathy and Israeli intransigence, the number of Gazan critics of the March of Return is increasing, as are their calls for stopping it. But the choice that the leaders of the march face are stark. Continue with the protests, in the hope of an unlikely positive outcome, and risk more losses and possibly a new war on Gaza. Or end the protests and tell their supporters that their sacrifices were for nothing, that their rights have slipped further away than ever, and that the blockade will continue to steal their lives away from them.
Ali Adam is a Gaza-based journalist and researcher whose work focuses on issues linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Company%20profile
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Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
Novak Djokovic - elbow
Roger Federer - back
Stan Wawrinka - knee
Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
Defined benefit and defined contribution schemes explained
Defined Benefit Plan (DB)
A defined benefit plan is where the benefit is defined by a formula, typically length of service to and salary at date of leaving.
Defined Contribution Plan (DC)
A defined contribution plan is where the benefit depends on the amount of money put into the plan for an employee, and how much investment return is earned on those contributions.
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Letstango.com
Started: June 2013
Founder: Alex Tchablakian
Based: Dubai
Industry: e-commerce
Initial investment: Dh10 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 300,000 unique customers every month
Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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SPEC%20SHEET
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What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
