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PRINCETON: Gaza protest in Palmer Square

By Greg Forester, Staff Writer
   Protesters gathered at Palmer Square at noontime Tuesday to rally against the growing violence in the Middle East’s Gaza Strip, where the Israeli military is continuing a controversial offensive against Islamic militants.
   Organized by the Princeton Middle East Society, the event drew about 45 protesters, including student members of Princeton University’s Princeton Committee on Palestine and members of the U.S. Federation for Middle East Peace.
   The rally occurred as violence continued this week in the Gaza Strip, where Israeli troops are searching for militants who have been launching rockets across the border, into Israel. Some of the militants, members of the organization known as Hamas, hold positions of political power in Palestine but Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S., Israel and some countries in Europe.
   ”There’s tremendous frustration (with the violence),” said Marilyn Jerry, a former president of the Princeton Middle East Society. “The scale of this thing is terrifying.”
   The Princeton Middle East Society advocates a peaceful solution to the conflict, Ms. Jerry said.
   ”Nobody should be firing at anybody,” said Ms. Jerry, standing in the group of protesters. “There is no military solution (to this conflict).”
   The Princeton Middle East Society was formed in 1983, and currently consists of around 100 members, dedicated to educating the public about the Middle East. The group’s focus is larger than the region’s politics or constant conflict, according to Ms. Jerry, who said the group also promotes the region’s culture and history.
   Much of the group’s work focuses on promoting an objective view of the region.
   ”Most news comes from a very pro-Israeli point of view,” Ms. Jerry said.
   Joining the Princeton Middle East Society as part of Tuesday’s rally were 10 Princeton University students representing the membership of the university’s Princeton Committee on Palestine. As with the rest of the protesters, some students were carrying signs, while others donned traditional Palestinian headscarves, known as hatta, or keffiyeh.
   One member, Sahin Naqvi, 18, said the organization was on hand to raise awareness about the dire situation, and promote alternative viewpoints on the longstanding conflict.
   ”In my opinion, a lot of the media and opinion in the U.S. is biased,” said Mr. Naqvi, who is Pakistani.
   He said it was important to provide an alternative point of view and promote neutral facts on campus, where he characterized the mood as “overwhelmingly pro-Israel.” Like others at the rally, he said there is a slanted point of view on the conflict, due to pro-Israel media and sentiment in the U.S.
   The Princeton Committee on Palestine has organized other events, said Mr. Naqvi.
   In late 2008 the group set up checkpoints similar to those at West Bank border crossings and other locations in Israel and Palestine, making random stops and searches of students in an effort to simulate what the group sees as a violation of basic freedoms.
   More events aimed at raising awareness of the Gaza conflict are planned for this week in Princeton.
   At 3 p.m. today students from Princeton High School and other schools will hold the Gaza Vigil on the high school’s front lawn. The group plans on releasing 150 balloons into the air, representing peace and calling attention to those who have died in the recent violence.
   ”We were going to have a demonstration, but we decided this would be more effective,” said Angie Abbis, a Princeton High School junior who helped organize the event.