Thwarting the normalization march of “Jerusalem Hug”
Jerusalemites were able on Thursday afternoon to thwart the match of “Jerusalem Hug” which was supposed to initiate from Damascus Gate until New gate (gates of the Old City of Jerusalem) with the participation of Palestinians from the West Bank and Israelis. Wadi Hilweh Information Center was informed that a group of Israelis and Palestinians were gathered near Damascus Gate t carry out the march of “hugs-holding hands and calling for peace”, but a group of Jerusalemite young men also gathered near Damascus Gate and confronted the carry-out of this normalization activity through explaining to the Palestinians participants the risk of their participation which aim at showing that Palestinians and Israelis are living together a dignified and fair life. The Jerusalemite young men said that some participants from the West Bank verbally assaulted them and also pushed them away resulting in verbal altercations. Also, a Jerusalemite woman was assaulted while the police provided full protection to the participants and arrested Mahdi Abu Sbeih and Shadi Al-Laban. They added that the participants were mostly from Ramallah, Bethlehem, Nablus and Tulkarem and it was clear that the organization of “Jerusalem Hug” did not explain the normalization goals behind the march but showed the march as a “humanitarian” march taking advantage of the Palestinians’ love and longing to visit Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
