“Belgium, like other Western states, decides to support at all costs the crimes committed by the Israeli colonial regime with complete impunity,” insisted the organizers, including the Popular University of Brussels, the autonomous anti-fascist coalition and the VUB movement in support of Palestine.
The demonstrators say they cannot and do not want to accept the position of Western states “which are allowing this genocide to occur.” “We must flood the streets with our anger, in solidarity with our sisters and brothers in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Iraq,” they proclaimed, before denouncing “Zionist terrorism.”
Around 6:30 p.m., the crowd headed towards the MR headquarters, located nearby, before some demonstrators broke a window and put tags on the facade. “MR accomplice”, “MR = racist movement”, we could read there. “It’s a stroke of genius”, was also among the inscriptions tagged on the Liberal Party building, in reference to the recent declarations of Georges-Louis Bouchez.
Questioned on Radio Judaïca, the president of the MR described the beeper attack of September 17, carried out in Lebanon and attributed to Israel, as a “stroke of genius”. These explosions killed 37 people – including a nine-year-old girl, an 11-year-old boy and two caregivers – and injured more than 2,000 people, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
A request to the Council of State against the City of Brussels
A request against the City of Brussels was filed with the Council of State by Aras Kabayel and Suzanne Dominguez, members of the citizen collective “United for Palestine” (UPP). The procedure, the hearing of which took place on Thursday, intends to denounce the City’s “informal refusals” against rallies in support of Palestine in front of the Brussels Stock Exchange.
Organized since October 2023 and “informally banned – notably by telephone – by the City for around two months”, these citizen gatherings have the sole aim of “raising public awareness of the ongoing genocide in Palestine and the bombings in Lebanon, and call for a ceasefire,” explains UPP.
“Despite peaceful mobilizations, demonstrators who show their support for the Palestinian cause are frequently dispersed in an aggressive manner, creating a climate of fear and intimidation,” points out the collective.
This is a direct attack on the fundamental right to assemble and demonstrate peacefully, the applicants believe. By refusing to hold these gatherings, while offering “inadequate” alternative locations, “the City of Brussels prevents citizens from expressing themselves “visibly and effectively in public space, and puts them at risk of police violence” , continues the UPP.
A commemorative gathering for the tens of thousands of Gazan victims should take place next Monday around 8 p.m. in front of the Stock Exchange, “but we are still in the dark, because the City of Brussels has not yet authorized it”, deplores Mr. Kabayel .
Contacted by Belga, the City of Brussels points out that it authorizes more than 1,000 demonstrations per year, and that it has given its approval to several pro-Palestinian mobilizations planned for next week on the Albertine and De Brouckère squares. Referring to “procedures are underway”, she made no further comments on next Monday’s gathering or on the request.
