Montrealers Participate in Global Strike in Support of Palestine

Montreal protesters gathered in Place Ville Marie in downtown Montreal in support of an international boycott for Palestine. This includes boycotting “all aspects of public life”, such as purchasing gas, groceries, holiday gifts, using your bank account in any way and attending work or school. The intention of this boycott is to halt the economy to apply pressure on governments to support a ceasefire in Gaza.

On Dec. 11, Israel’s bombardment of Gaza had killed nearly 18,000 people so far, according to estimates published by Al Jazeera.

Palestinians in Gaza called for a global strike on Dec. 11 to support a ceasefire in Gaza. This action was a part of the international global strike. During the bombardment of Gaza, consumers and corporations are being brought into the narrative through boycotts and other forms of protest.

In a statement by the National and Islamic Forces, a coalition of major Palestinian factions, they wrote, “We expect the entire globe to join the strike, which comes in the context of a broad international movement involving influential figures. This movement stands against the open genocide in Gaza, the ethnic cleansing and the colonial settlement in the West Bank.”

The decades-long movement known as Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS) aims to put financial pressure on the state of Israel to follow international law and end human rights abuses against Palestinians. The BDS movement formed around 2005, with inspiration from the South African anti-apartheid movement of the 1980s and early 1990s. During this time, consumers across the world boycotted goods made in South Africa and divested from shares in South African companies. This boycott put pressure on the regime's economy to help lead to an end of apartheid in the country.

The protest was hosted by Montreal-based Palestine solidarity organization Montreal4Palestine. The organization spoke about different institutions that are complicit in the war in Gaza, including Canadian politicians and the media. 

Protesters chanted, “Every time the media lies a neighbourhood in Gaza dies”. This chant refers to the role some media outlets have in manufacturing consent for the war in Gaza by not providing enough Palestinian narrative and separating Palestinians from Hamas. 

Israeli continues to defend their decision to bomb Gaza, stating they must eradicate Hamas, while thousands of Palestinians are being killed by these bombardments. At the same time, violence against Palestinians in the West Bank has increased.

A total of 110 hostages, taken prisoner during the 7 October attacks on Israel, have now been released, according to the BBC. Seventy-eight of them are Israeli women and children, released under a deal between Israel and Hamas in November. Five Israelis had already been released in October. 

Three Russian-Israelis, who were not included in Israel's deal with Hamas, have also been released. Twenty-three Thai hostages and one Filipino were freed as part of a separate deal between Hamas and the Thai government. 

In exchange for the hostages held by Hamas, Israel released 249 Palestinians held in Israeli jails. Most of the Palestinians who were imprisoned were women and children and they were not formally charged. Activists refer to them as Palestinian hostages instead of Palestinian prisoners. 

Of the 300 Palestinian women and children whom Israel has identified for potential release as part of the humanitarian pause between Israel and Hamas, nearly 80 percent were not formally charged.

On December 12, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for a “sustainable ceasefire” in Gaza. Activists say this is not enough, asking for Canada to end its support for Israel’s occupation of Palestine and an end to the siege on Gaza.