Demonstrators rallied against military escalation, calling for “Hands Off Palestine and Lebanon,” in the middle of the Grape and Wine Festival at Market Square, downtown St. Catharines, on Saturday, Sept. 28. Niagara Palestine Coalition (NPC) members handed out flyers demanding a two-way arms embargo and BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions).
Through a press release, Dawoud Najmudin of the NPC said, “I got a message from a Lebanese-Canadian friend who lost three relatives in one Israeli strike, with six more needing to get to the hospital. A few minutes later, she told me they didn’t make it. Eleven family members killed in a few minutes. We can’t and won’t sit silently while our friends and fellow civilians are murdered with our tax dollars and our government's support. May God have mercy on all our martyrs, and forgive us for our complicity in these war crimes.”
NPC spokesperson Gabriel Gebril said, “Today some enjoy the circus of Grape and Wine, while my family in Lebanon flee belts of fire from Zionist war planes. Every time they miss a call or don't read a text, we worry they're martyred or injured. The Zionists are igniting the region into full-scale war. It's high time for the solidarity movement to ignite and spur real change.”
According to the release, the Niagara Palestine Coalition was founded in the wake of the October crisis in Palestine in 2023 and has members from diverse backgrounds and various faiths, including Palestinians, Jews, Indigenous peoples, academics, union activists, students, youth, and retirees across the Niagara region of Ontario. It has organized weekly events such as demonstrations, fundraisers, and educational workshops in Niagara.
