On Saturday, thousands of supporters of the Palestinian cause gathered in front of the US Embassy in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, to denounce Israel’s continued violations of international law as the Rafah refugee camp was under intense bombardment.
The demonstration, named “A Billion Curses for Zionist Israel,” was planned to demonstrate sympathy and solidarity with the Palestinian people, especially in the wake of an Israeli bombardment in Rafah on May 26 that claimed the lives of at least 45 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to the local newspaper Jakarta Globe.
With over 47 million social media shares, the hashtag #alleyesonrafah has garnered attention worldwide.
At six in the morning (local time), a large group of people assembled in front of the embassy, many of them holding Palestinian flags and yelling anti-Zionist and anti-US chants.
“The attendance is quite high. May we soon see Palestinian independence and may our dedication to protecting Palestine flourish and remain firm,” Mardani prayed.
In addition, he complimented the audience for their excitement and encouraged them to show their support on social media. The audience reacted to his address with cries of “Allahuakbar (Allah is Great)!” and other exclamations.
Other speakers exhorted the audience to keep boycotting Israeli goods and to stay away from buying anything from businesses that support or are connected to Israel. They also blamed Washington for not doing enough to stop Israel’s behavior.
The government was urged by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to mobilize foreign military assistance in support of Palestine in order to put a stop to Israel’s crimes.
MUI Fatwa Chairman Asrorun Niam Sholeh said in a statement on Friday that “the Indonesian government must initiate military aid with other nations, especially Islamic countries (OIC), to stop the brutality and barbarity of Zionist Israel, in light of the heinous mass killings and evident genocide in Gaza.”
