Nanaimo’s mayor says he was not surprised to see a pro-Palestinian demonstration take place yesterday and he fully understands their frustration with the conflict happening in Gaza and along the West Bank.
“I think it points out that all of us are absolutely horrified by the horrific acts committed by Hamas,” Mayor Leonard Krog says. “Hamas is not the Palestinian people who are, like the Israeli citizens, suffering the brunt of what Hamas has started by its acts of terrorism.
“There is no surprise there has been this kind of a reaction.”
A handful of demonstrators gathered at the corner of Commercial Street and Terminal Avenue yesterday as a call to action for the federal government to let people who are suffering and dying have access to needed services and humanitarian aid.
However, last week the Canadian government pledged an additional $10 million in humanitarian aid for both Gaza and Israel including food, water, medical supplies, and protection services.
Krog says he fully understands the frustrations of both the Palestinian, and Jewish communities in the city and hopes a resolution can be found to end the “horrific attacks.”
“I hope there is peace in Gaza and Israel soon,” Krog says. “In times of war, it is the civilian population which suffers the most.”
The war along the West Bank has raging since Oct. 7 and more than 4,300 Palestinians have died so far as a result of the conflict.
