US analyst: Quds Day raised awareness of Palestine injustice

Although there has been virtually no progress towards the Palestinians gaining justice, al-Quds Days have raised the awareness of people around the world of their plight, according to an American writer and analyst. “The lack of tangible progress is evident in the fact that al-Quds Days are never even publicized in the US media, as well as in the fact that there was so little coverage of the Nakba Day protests and border crossings in May this year,” said Kathy Christison. “US policymakers and the US Congress have absolutely no concept of the injustices Palestinians endure and have endured for 60+ years and no understanding of what is required for a truly just peace,” Christison said. The last Friday of Ramadan was designated by the late Islamtic revolution leader Imam Khomeini in 1980 for people around the world to express their solidarity with the Palestinians and others suffering oppression. In an interview with IRNA, Christison said there had been “little progress” in stopping Israel's absorption of more and more Palestinian territory, but “good progress” in raising awareness about the injustices in the intervening 31 years. “The situation of Palestinians on the ground in Palestine is far worse, perhaps than it has ever been, and the prospects for true peace are far dimmer,” she said. “At the same time, however, there is far more awareness of Palestinian needs at the popular level, both in the West and in the Middle East itself.” “In the current revolutionary situation, the prospects for a sudden turnaround toward greater justice for Palestine are brighter,” the American analyst said. This, she said, has been “emphasized even more sharply by popular protests supporting Palestinian rights during the 'Arab spring', most recently during the protests this weekend outside the Israeli embassy in Cairo.” Christison believed it was difficult to predict what the ultimate effect of this grassroots support will be on the centers of power in Washington, Tel Aviv, and throughout Europe. “But it's difficult to conceive that this will not ultimately have a strong impact in terms of undermining US and other Western support for Israel and ultimately undermining Zionism,” she added. “I believe it is vital that protests in the Arab world continue to highlight the Palestinians' plight. This is perhaps the only way to create a momentum toward peace,” the US writer said. Her analysis was that the Palestinians' own protests, including particularly the regular weekly protests against the Separation Wall, and the Palestinian-led boycott-divestment-sanctions (BDS) movement are “critically important.” “But virtually the only way of bringing these protests to world attention is if protesters throughout the Arab world continue to highlight the Palestinians situation and put pressure on their governments to accomplish something,” she said.