Elbit protests
This morning activists attempted to shut down an Elbit Systems facility in Cambridge. The protestors blockaded the entrance and splashed red paint around the building. The Israeli defense company is Israel’s largest weapons supplier.
“Right now Israel is using Elbit’s weapons to mass murder thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children indiscriminately,” said one protester.
“Groups like Palestine Action in the UK have shown how sustained direct action can make business inoperable for Elbit,” reads a statement from the group Shut Elbit Down.
“Palestine Action permanently closed an Elbit factory and their London HQ, and have made Elbit stocks drop, after relentless direct action and a number of arrests. Now, Elbit stocks are surging as they churn out more weapons for Israel’s genocidal siege of Gaza. While Israel inflicts this genocidal violence, it does so with the full support and financial backing of the United States, the world’s biggest arms dealer and purveyor of violence. We know Elbit’s trail of death and destruction goes beyond Palestine, from the US-Mexico border to the Mediterranean to the Philippines. Living in the United States, we have an obligation to take direct action against murderous companies like Elbit.
“The mass murder of Palestinians, immigrants, and other oppressed peoples will continue as long as we permit those perpetrating it to operate in our communities,” it continues. “Today is just the beginning. We will continue to take action to make it impossible for Elbit to operate in Cambridge, until Elbit is gone.”
Elbit sent Mondoweiss the following statement: “Elbit America unequivocally condemns Hamas and its barbaric acts of terrorism. We stand with Israel and its people as they defend their country and citizens.”
New York assault
An 18-year-old Palestinian man was assaulted by a group waving Israeli flags in Brooklyn.
“The Palestinian man was with two friends on 86th St. near Fourth Ave. in Bay Ridge about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday when three cars rolled by,” reported The Daily News. “Several men were in each car, waving Israeli flags out the window and screaming anti-Palestinian statements, cops said. When the cars pulled over, the men jumped out of the vehicles and zeroed in on the 18-year-old. After the attackers punched and kicked the Palestinian man, they ran back to their cars and sped off, said police. The victim’s two friends, ages 19 and 20, were not harmed.”
White House walks back beheading comments
In his address last night President Joe Biden said, “I never really thought that I would see and have confirmed pictures of terrorists beheading children.”
The White House has since walked these comments back, claiming that Biden was repeating something he heard from Israeli media reports and Prime Minister Netanyahu’s spokesperson.
“That specific report and that number I can’t confirm,” an IDF spokesperson told NBC News.
Hochul comments
City & State NY reporter Rebecca Lewis asked New York Governor Kathy Hochul if she had a message for Palestinian New Yorkers fearing for their loved ones in Gaza. She said they should reject Hamas.
“I call on law-abiding citizens to reject Hamas,” said the Governor. “They should not necessarily be confused. Hamas is a terrorist organization. They should not define the people who–the Palestinians who reject violence, especially the horrific attacks that were perpetrated on the Jewish state last Saturday.”
