|
Iraqis and Israelis Protest U.S. Attacks on Afghanistan
BAGHDAD, Oct 10 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Several thousand Iraqis protested for a second day running Wednesday against U.S.-British air strikes on Afghanistan, branding Washington the world's greatest criminal, as around 50 left-wing Arab and Jewish Israelis staged a small, but lively protest outside the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv, also protesting against U.S. strikes on Afghanistan, news agencies reported.
The protestors in Tel Aviv, chanted such slogans as: "USA, how many kids did you kill today?"
The demonstrators also waved banners showing Uncle Sam and with the slogan "Uncle Death is knocking at your door."
Other placards read: "Stop your terror Bush, Blair and Sharon" and "Bombs kill people."
They also called for an Israeli withdrawal from occupied Palestinian territories.
There were no incidents during the protest.
In Baghdad, workers and students also protested for the second day in a row the U.S.-led attacks on Afghanistan.
Many of the protestors carried portraits of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and trampled and burned an American flag, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Civil servants joined workers and students and ruling Baath party members on the march through the Al-Mansur district in the west of the capital.
"America is the greatest criminal in the world," read one banner.
An estimated 15,000 demonstrators turned out Tuesday in the north of Baghdad.
Iraqi civilians have also actively protested Israel's excessive use of force against the Palestinians in the current Intifada, or uprising, against illegal Israeli occupation.
Meanwhile, the Iraqi president denounced the U.S. strikes as an "illegal aggression" after they began Sunday following the failure of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban to hand over Osama bin Laden to the United States.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri warned Tuesday that U.S. and British forces targeting Afghanistan might use the pretext of terrorism to strike Iraq too in a bid to "to settle old scores".
Wednesday's Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting in Doha, Qatar - involving 57 foreign ministers of Muslim countries - also denounced any attempts by the U.S. to use its "war on terrorism" as a pretext to extend aggression towards targets in Iraq or other Muslim and Arab countries.
Muslim and Arab countries have long voiced that the only justification for the attacks on Afghanistan would be to target those responsible for the September 11th attacks, and not to simply target Muslim countries or the civilians of Afghanistan, of whom 81 have already been reported dead as a result of the attacks - including women and children.
|
