IT IS NEVER OK TO SUPPORT GENOCIDE!

Today a manifestation was staged at the Raoul Wallenberg Square in support of
the state Israel. Israel is right now driving it's largest offensive
against the Palestinian people since 1967: Israeli soldiers are
killing, razing and looting, and it is becoming all the more obvious
that a massacre has happened in the refugee camp in Jenin. The
Palestinian society is systematically destroyed and the life support
for a whole people is shut down. To demonstrate for Israel now
is despicable. It doesn not belong in a society which protects
democratic views and the equal rights of all people.

The groups who were behind the demonstration do not only sympathize
with the illegal occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza strip -
they are actively participating in it directly through their
actions. For example the United Israelcollection, the swedish
branch of Jewish Agency, finance settlements on confiscated
Palestinian ground and transport colonists there. One of the
speakers at the meeting, the notorious Pentecostalist pastor
Stanley Sjöberg, said about the events in Jenin, Ramallah
and Gaza that "any other nation would do the things the Israeli
army are forced to do". He also incited against muslims and
arabs and claimed that they are driven by a wish for war, while
the spirit of the jews is one of want for peace.

One of the slogans that were raised at the sionist manifestation was
struggle against anti-semitism. To mix in the support for Israel
with the question of antisemitism is a distasteful but common
way to try to hide the support for a terror-state in a respectable
suit. This is an old trick to excuse the Israeli crimes, but no one
longer falls for it. We who protest against the manifestation of the
zionists are of course also opponents to antisemitism and racism.

Those who support the Israeli occupation can not stand unchallanged.
This is why we, the Syndicalist Youth Federation (SUF) and Young
Left, arranged a demonstration under the slogan of "It can never
be OK to support genocide". About 400 people gathered outside the
R. Wallenberg Square with placards with texts such as "Stop the
massacre in Palestine", "Jenin" and "Ethnic cleansing with Ariel".
We had no intention to stop the manifestation of the zionists.
Nothing was thrown, no one was attacked and our demonstration
was completely calm, we didn't disturb their manifestation in any
way. The zionists have the right to express their views. But we
also have the right to express ours, and point out to the public
what the support for Israel really means.

The police of Stockholm then attacked our demonstration with about
10 horses, agressive dogs, batons, whips and shields. Not a
single act of violence from our side, and still we were brutally
driven away from the place where we had gathered. The commanding
officer encouraged his men to use their batons. Many were struck
by harsh baton blows and kicks, many were forced to the ground and
kicked at with injuries as the result. Young people who had
committed no other crime than to express their opinions were attacked
with unprovooked and massive outrage. We are going to press charges
against the police who stood for the most obvious assaults. No
counterattack against the police took place, nothing was thrown
and everyone was peaceful. There was no basis at all for the
actions of the police.

We will never let up our solidarity with the Palestinian people.

/ Syndicalist Youth Federation Stockholm,  http://www.suf.cc
/ Young Left