Protests continue at Rockland Plaza

On Sunday, February 25, demonstrators supporting both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict stood along South Middletown Road in Nanuet near the Rockland Plaza to make their voices heard. Though Israel and Hamas are currently inching toward a deal that would free some of the approximately 130 hostages held in the Gaza strip in exchange for a week’s pause in the five month war (according to AP News), tensions remain high.

Rockland is no stranger to such demonstrations: since the beginning of the war three Rockland residents have been arrested for re- moving Israeli flags from town buildings, one of them a fifteen year old Palestinian American who took down a flag that was being dis- played at the Clarkstown Police Department. Frequent protests have also occurred along New Hempsted Road in New City, across the street from the county court house.

Both of the groups that assembled on Sun- day have been rallying at the same location since the war began in October of 2023.

“This is a rally to show that we support Israel,” said Joy Pell, a demonstrator for the Is- raeli side. “We want to make sure that there’s a voice for people who support Israel. We want people to understand that it was attacked… Hostages are being taken and still being held and that we want them released. And do we eventually want peace? Yes. But the peace has to come where Israel can survive (with it).”

“I’ve been here for 35 years and I love American culture—that we stand for justice, freedom and equality,” said Khader Humied, a Palestinian Rockland resident. “It breaks my heart that we have a conflict where people are really suffering in Gaza and being killed by the thousands, and our government chooses to veto the United Nations’ resolution to have a ceasefire three times… I feel I have to come out and encourage people to do the right thing, which is to provide safety and end the fight of the war, to end harm to children, to end the destruction of a society who cannot be blamed for the guilt of a few. It’s unfair to impose this unbelievable pain.”