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Israeli Protesters Form Human Chain
The Reuters for the Yahoo News
July 25, 2004
By the Yahoo Photos
Jerusalem: The biggest demonstration since the initiative was proposed in February sent a clear signal of the political battle facing Sharon, who has done an about turn from one-time godfather of the movement to settle land captured in the 1967 war.
"This chain is a sign of strength," said Anita Tucker, one of the 8,000 settlers living in heavily-protected Gaza enclaves alongside more than 1.3 million Palestinians.
"Most of the people love the land of Israel and don't want to see anything destroyed," she said.
Organisers said some 200,000 took part, while police estimated the crowd at 130,000.
The 90km human chain stretched from the northern Gaza Strip to Jerusalem's Western Wall, Judaism's holiest shrine.
Police ordered an eight-kilometre gap outside Jerusalem for security reasons.
Under Sharon's plan for "disengagement" from nearly four years of conflict with the Palestinians, all 21 settlements in Gaza and four of 120 in the West Bank would be evacuated by the end of next year.
While polls show that most Israelis would happily relinquish Gaza as too costly in money and blood, many right-wingers are against giving up land to the Palestinians and say it would be a "reward for Palestinian terror."
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