Anti-war protesters gathered outside the US consulate in Admiralty on Sunday, calling on Washington to stop suppressing the pro-Palestinian movement amid Israel’s US-backed war in Gaza.
The group – HK Anti-war Mobilization – told HKFP on Sunday that the consulate called the police, who searched and ID’ed the five activists, warning them not to violate the security law.
“Over the past week, Israel has torn apart the ceasefire agreement, first suspending the exchange of hostages, then shutting off water and electricity to Gaza, then relaunching the bombardment of Gaza overnight on Tuesday (18th), brutally killing 404 people,” the group said in a statement.
“[W]e stand before you today to express our support for the liberation of Palestine and for anti-war activists worldwide, who are being slaughtered, suppressed and silenced.”
See also: ‘It’s mostly women and children’: Hong Kong surgeon speaks of treating wounded Palestinians in Gaza
Gaza’s Health Ministry said last week that over 50,000 people had been killed in the Palestinian territory since the latest conflict began in early October 2023. However, The Lancet medical journal has said the actual death toll may be up to 41 per cent higher. According to a UN report, the majority of verified victims were women and children.
The latest conflict started when Hamas gunmen launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing at least 1,139 people and taking around 250 hostages to Gaza. In retaliation, Israel vowed it would destroy Hamas and carried out a bombardment campaign on the Gaza Strip for more than a year.
Last Tuesday, a ceasefire – in place since January 19 – was shattered as Israel began a fresh assault on Gaza. Israel has urged the release of dozens of hostages still remaining in the war-torn enclave.
Outside the US consulate on Sunday, the activists held placards saying: “The West is complicit in Israel’s genocide” and “Make fascists afraid.”
Their statement added: “Western governments, led by the United States, have ignored the voices of their citizens and become complicit in the genocide of Palestinians, furthering Israel’s racist and colonialist aims.”
Police search
The group said they were not surprised that police had been called in on Sunday. “The US government is suppressing [the] pro-Palestine movement because the US is aligning with Israel to conduct the genocide against Palestinians,” it said.
They said that the police “reminded us not to violate the national security law, not to contain any sedition content in our slogans, and not to cover our face under [the] face-covering regulation,” as they searched and took down the identity card details of the activists.
In response, the US consulate told HKFP on Monday that the five were blocking their driveway and it had to ensure the safety of its staff and facilities.
“The protesters were in front of the consulate vehicle gate, posing a safety and security risk for themselves and consulate staff,” it said. “We fully support the rights of citizens to protest peacefully and safely. Protests near the consulate are a common occurrence.”
A year ago, US Consul General Gregory May said on Facebook that he supported the rights of protesters outside the diplomatic mission.
“[W]e stand up for fundamental freedoms and human rights. While I respectfully disagree with these visitors’ views, I fully support their right to protest peacefully,” he said.
In an emailed response on Monday, police told HKFP that they “received a report at about 2pm on March 23 that there were five people conducting a public meeting outside 26 Garden Road, Central. Upon Police arrival, the five people were reminded to ensure that the public meeting should be conducted in accordance with the law.”
Mahmoud Khalil detention
The five demonstrators were also calling on the US to release student activist Mahmoud Khalil.
Khalil, a permanent resident of the United States and a lead negotiator for Columbia University’s pro-Palestine campus occupation, was detained by US immigration enforcement on March 8 upon orders by the State Department to revoke his visa.
“The unjust detention of Khalil showed that the US doesn’t care about justice and freedom at all,” HK Anti-war Mobilization said.
“The US government is cracking down on the pro-Palestinian movement on all fronts, fearing that the people will tell the truth about the genocide,” the group also said.
“Ironically, the legislation used to arrest Khalil was the same one used by the US government in the 1950s to block Holocaust survivors in Eastern Europe from entering the US,” the protest group said.
See also: Hongkongers show solidarity with Palestine amid Israel-Hamas war, but keep efforts low-key
US President Donald Trump has threatened to punish students that he claims support Hamas or promote antisemitism, though critics say Khalil’s detention is an unconstitutional attack on free speech.
Last year, the International Court of Justice – the principal judicial body of the United Nations – ruled that Israel’s acts in Gaza could amount to genocide. Israel has denied the claims.
The UN-backed International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu and ex-defence chief Yoav Gallant, together with a former Hamas commander, over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
