Posted on 01/28/24
For the fifth consecutive day, protesters have blocked the Kerem Shalom border crossing, barring the daily convoy of trucks that carry supplies into the Gaza Strip, directly into Hamas hands.
Hundreds of Israelis from across the political spectrum and every region of the country continue to make their way on foot past Israel National Police checkpoints in order to stand shoulder to shoulder with the families of hostages, fallen IDF troops and active combat soldiers at the Kerem Shalom border crossing.
A grassroots protest has galvanized into a popular protest movement known as “Tzav 9” – a reference clearly understood by all Israelis as an emergency call-up order – in this case, not for military duty but for civilian duty in support of the troops and their mission.
“We are here in order to help bring the hostages and the soldiers home - quickly and safely. We are here to stop the convoys from bringing supplies to our mortal enemy, the terrorists of Hamas. We are here because supplies that drive through this checkpoint go straight into the hands of the very people who are holding our loved ones captive – denying them medical attention, subjecting them to inhuman abuse and using them as human shields. We are here to support IDF soldiers who continue to put their lives on the line, because we all know that placing our enemy under siege is the legal, moral, ethical and logical way to end this war faster,” said Reut Ben Haim, a mother of 8 and resident of Netivot. “There is no precedent in the world for a country at war with a brutal terrorist group that continues to provide for all of the terrorists’ needs while our own people are fighting, dying, and being held in the terrorists’ clutches.”
The peaceful, broad-based and increasingly large crowds at the Kerem Shalom border have been successfully blocking the convoys since Wednesday; their impact has reached as far the US Administration, which released a strident message demanding that the convoys be allowed to pass. Prime Minister Netanyahu responded, as well – and the Israel National Police and the IDF have been placed on alert. This afternoon, a military closure order was expanded, placing an even greater area off limits to protesters – but the protest continues to swell and the trucks continue to stand idle.
“No supplies will get past us until the humanitarian rights of our hostages are insured. The Red Cross, the United Nations and every civilized country in the world should be demanding that Israeli captives are visited by medical teams, that they are properly treated by their captors, and that they are returned immediately. Then, and only then, will there be justification for talking about humanitarian aid for the Gazans,” said Shlomo Sarid, a protest organizer from the Jordan Valley. “What’s happening here makes no sense. Humanitarian aid must be supplied without throwing Hamas a lifeline.”
