Thirty-two years after the Oslo Accord was signed, the Gaza Strip has become the largest hell in the world, with hopes for peace between Israel and Palestine shattered, while Palestinians in the enclave are desperate in humanitarian crisis and a widening war.
The Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (DoP), or the Oslo Accord, was signed between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization on September 13, 1993.
This agreement established the general guidelines for the negotiations and laid the foundations for a Palestinian Interim Self-Government in the West Bank and Gaza for a transitional period of five years.
Yet 32 years later, with Israel's ongoing military operations and blockade, hopes for peace have been drowned in blood and tears.
Gaza residents expressed their extreme anger and deep frustration over Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territory.
"Years after the Oslo Accord, a peace agreement, was signed, Israel is striking us with the most extreme violence and aggression. It is neither willing to coexist peacefully with us nor allows us to resist," said a resident of Gaza City.
"I think the reality in Gaza has shown the world the true trajectory of the Oslo Accord. In the Gaza Strip, Israel openly violates the jurisdiction of the Palestinian National Authority, which should have been the foundation for governance in a future Palestinian state. Israel even demands that Palestinians leave their homeland and Gaza. The reality in Gaza is clear evidence of Israel's intention to marginalize and even expel Palestinians," said another Gaza City resident.
"With the time passing by, Jewish settlements have been almost everywhere on the West Bank. Israelis have become the masters of the Palestinian land, while we are left with nowhere to live, adrift in the world," said a displaced Palestinian.
Palestinians reflect on broken promises of Oslo Accord
Demonstrators from civil groups, trade unions and other communities in South Africa rallied outside the U.S. Consulate in Johannesburg on Friday, denouncing U.S. unilateral military actions against Venezuela and voicing solidarity with the Latin American nation.
They gathered along the street in front of the consulate, carrying banners that read "Hands Off Venezuela" and "Stop Imperialism," chanting slogans against U.S. hegemony and aggression.
"We are here to protest the U.S. threats to global peace, the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro Moros of Venezuela, which was done in violation of international law, in violation of territorial integrity of Venezuela, of course, in violation of national sovereignty of Venezuela," said Solly Afrika Mapaila, general secretary of the South African Communist Party.
In the early hours of Jan. 3, the United States carried out a military strike against Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, taking them to the United States.
Some protesters said the crisis in Venezuela shows how geopolitical struggles have direct and immediate effects on ordinary people's lives.
"Venezuela belongs to the people of Venezuela and nobody else. For American belligerent and colonial aggression, quite frankly, is not just something very distant. Never before have questions of geopolitics been of immediate and direct relevance and direct and immediate impacts on the day-to-day lives of ordinary people, as you are seeing today," said Mametlwe Sebei, president of the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA).
Placards at the rally blended English and Spanish slogans, while some demonstrators sang liberation songs from South Africa's anti-apartheid era to express solidarity. Passing motorists slowed in front of the consulate, honking in support.
Defying the summer heat, the crowd remained spirited and resolute, their chants echoing along the street in a clear call for an end to foreign interference and respect for Venezuela's sovereignty.
South Africans rally in solidarity with Venezuela against U.S. aggression
