Dhaka: Thousands of people protesting Israel’s war on Gaza rallied at one of Bangladesh’s top universities on Monday in solidarity with student-led protests around the world and the occupation.
Pro-Palestine student leaders and activists from various universities marched carrying flags of Bangladesh and Palestine and raised slogans in solidarity with Gaza as they marched towards Dhaka University, Bangladesh’s largest and oldest tertiary institution.
Their protest culminated at the symbolic Invincible Bangla sculpture, one of the most famous sites dedicated to the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
“Our position is very clear: we express solidarity in support of an independent Palestinian state, in favor of a world free from war. And we support the demands made by American students, such as divestment from Israel and other organizations that support Israeli aggression,” Saddam Hussein, president of the organizing student group Bangladesh Students League, told Arab News.
He said they are also holding the rally in solidarity with the global student movement.
He said, “We believe that the same spirit of youth lies in all the protests, whether it is on the banks of the Atlantic or here on the banks of the Padma River.”
“Youth around the world have a common dream, and I urge all of them to move forward to realize this dream. I hope that all the youth of the world will join this protest to build a world free from war, free and guided by the human spirit.
Israeli attacks on Gaza that began in October have killed about 35,000 people in the Palestinian territory, mostly women and children. The leader of the World Food Program said over the weekend that parts of the Gaza Strip are facing “complete famine” that is spreading into the besieged territory.
Students began rallying or setting up tents at various universities across the US last month to protest Israel’s war on Gaza, sparking a global solidarity movement among youth in India, Australia, France and elsewhere. Many people put pressure on their administrators and governments. Broke ties with Tel Aviv.
While American colleges have seen protests since October, unrest has escalated in recent weeks after police arrested pro-Palestinian protesters at an encampment at Columbia University, sparking even more encampments on other campuses, along with More actions and arrests have also taken place.
Unlike the US, students in Dhaka were able to protest peacefully with little police presence.
“The US and some other big players always speak in favor of freedom of expression. But what we have seen on university campuses in America is a matter of shame for world leaders,” Soleiman Khan, a 23-year-old student at Dhaka University, told Arab News.
“This is double standards. We, the youth (of Bangladesh), came to the streets against such hypocrisy of the world’s superpowers.”
Khan said that violence against Palestinians “must be stopped now and forever.”
“We have seen a lot of atrocities committed by Israeli forces,” he said. How many more lives will the world have to lose? Is this not enough?” He said.
“I think world leaders must come to their senses and act more rationally to stop the atrocities committed by the occupying Israeli forces in Gaza. Now the time has come to play a decisive role. Otherwise, the next generation will not forgive us.”