Palestinians denied entry for Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day Ceremony
The ceremony comes to state that "War Is Not an Act of Fate – But a Choice of Man," according to Combatants for Peace.
By TZVI JOFFREIsraeli Palestinian Memorial Day Ceremony(photo credit: WIKIMEDIA/GITLITS TATYANA)
181 Palestinians who requested to take part in the joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day event in Tel Aviv were denied entry, the Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday, according to Walla! news.The reason given for the rejection was the closure which will be imposed on the West Bank on Memorial Day, even though Palestinians have been permitted to take part in the event in past years, even when there was a closure.Israeli Palestinian Bereaved Families for Peace and Combatants for Peace, the two organizations which organize the event, will petition the High Court of Justice about the decision. Last year, the High Court ordered the state to allow the Palestinians entry after their request was denied.The Israeli Palestinian Memorial Day Ceremony began as a ceremony of 50 people in 2005, according to Combatants for Peace. It was started by Buma Inbar, who lost her son in Lebanon in 1995, together with other peace activists and the Combatants for Peace movement and has become a joint event with Israeli Palestinian Bereaved Families for Peace.The ceremony comes to state that "War Is Not an Act of Fate – But a Choice of Man," according to Combatants for Peace.In 2017, 4,000 people attended the event while hundreds more stood outside. A parallel event with 600 people took place in Beit Jala in the West Bank, with other events in Kiryat Tivon, Berlin, Switzerland, the US, UK and other countries.Protests organized by Yoav Eliassi, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Michael Ben-Ari and others took place after the 2017 event.7,000 Israelis and Palestinians took part in the ceremony in 2018. The theme was "Remembering our Future Together." Protests were held outside that year's event as well.The 2019 event, under the theme "Sharing Sorrow. Bringing Hope," will take place on May 7th at 9 p.m. Israel local time (2 p.m. EST).
