WASHINGTON, D.C. – Nearly everyone at a pro-Palestinian vigil supporting Hamas’ surprise attack that killed hundreds of Israeli civilians hid their faces with masks Tuesday night and refused to reveal their names.
“We are here today to honor our martyrs and to honor the struggle for liberation that they made the ultimate sacrifice for,” a vigil organizer told the crowd of students. “Our resistance fighters are defying Zionist intelligence as we speak, exposing the cracks and its ironclad foundation and dispelling the illusion of its invincibility.”
George Washington University students chant “from the river to the sea Palestine will be free.” (Jon Michael Raasch/Fox News Digital)
About 50 people attended a Students for Justice in Palestine at George Washington University event, “Vigil for the Martyrs of Palestine,” and were encouraged to bring flowers, signs and face coverings. The group handed out masks at the event to help attendees disguise their identities.
“Glory to our martyrs, each and every one,” the speaker, who refused to share his name with Fox News, continued. “May they attain the highest level of paradise.”
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS HOLD VIGIL TO BRING ‘GLORY TO OUR MARTYRS’:
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Hamas launched a surprise attack in Israel Saturday, killing more than 1,200 Israelis, including elderly civilians, women and children, and taking others hostage. Israeli villages near the Gaza border have been massacred, with “a lot of men, women and children” beheaded, according to Israel Defense Forces commander.
Israel declared war against Hamas in response and has launched retaliatory strikes against in Gaza.
Israelis evacuate a site struck by a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, southern Israel, Monday, Oct. 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
“Over the past few days, the Zionist entity has rained and continues to rain down bombs and missiles on Gaza, indiscriminately targeting men, women and children, slaughtering entire families,” the speaker told the crowd. “Over 900 of our people have ascended to martyrdom.”
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As of Wednesday, at least 1,100 people, including 326 children, have been killed by Israel’s airstrikes in Gaza, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
“They call us savages, barbarians, terrorists, but we know who the real terrorists are,” the student speaker said.
A Fox News reporter was repeatedly interrupted while trying to interview attendees. It’s unclear whether they were organizers or other attendees since they refused to identify themselves.
Students held signs and read poems in support of Palestinian “martyrs.” (Jon Michael Raasch/Fox News Digital)
The event organizers instructed the crowd against speaking to the media and told them to direct the press to speak with the vigil leaders. But the vigil leaders declined Fox News’ interview requests and refused to answer questions.
“It just appalls me, the amount of violence on both sides,” Sami, a student who overheard but did not attend the vigil, told Fox News. “I’ve seen Palestinian children get burned alive. Seen videos of rape, of murder of [Israeli] civilians by Hamas.”
“My personal belief, it’s a radical belief among many, but you need to end the Israeli state as we know it,” he continued. “And we need a binational state that has equal rights for both Palestinians and Israelis within the area we know as Israel.”
The Students for Justice in Palestine chapters at colleges across the country have been organizing similar pro-Palestine events that are set to take place later this week.
