Quad Cities Coalition for Palestine emerged earlier this year after numerous area residents were concerned about media coverage and the lack of events being held by elected officials regarding the humanitarian crisis in the occupied territories of Palestine.
This Saturday, August 31st, the organization is holding a rally at 1:30 p.m. at 4000 Avenue of the Cities in Moline, Illinois. The infographic shared on their Facebook page explains the purpose is to demand an end to funding and weapon transfers to Israel.
One of the organizers is Ahmad. WVIK agreed to publish his first name only as he has family and friends within the region and they could be targeted for his public statements.
Ahmad's father moved to the Quad Cities in the 1960s and left in the 1980s to live in Jordan, where Ahmad was born. Ahmad returned to the United States to attend college in 2003 and became a citizen. He's been living with his family in the Quad Cities since 2012.
Ahmad says keeping in touch with his friends in Gaza has been a struggle. He says people are having to leave voicemails, and hopefully, the recipient will receive an internet connection and can respond.
"When someone tells you, 'I'm hungry,' or 'My kids are hungry,' or 'My child just died,' it's not a comfortable conversation to have with anyone," Ahmad said in a phone interview with WVIK.
Ahmad has family in the West Bank, and he says Israeli settlers are being armed by Israel and driving Palestinians out of territories that are internationally known as parts of Palestine.
"It's a very, very tough situation. And the right-wing extremists are not helping. [Bezalel] Smotrich, as the finance minister, has been distributing AR-15s like candy to extremists within the Zionist community. They're taking over a lot of land—land that has been tied up in the court system for many years because Palestinians are not allowed to obtain building permits," Ahmad said. "They call them outposts or settlements, which is just another word for stealing land. The Israeli solution is simply to legalize it retroactively and provide utilities to those who stole the land. And we're talking about a significant amount of land."
According to a 2023 presentation by the High Commissioner for Human Rights at the United Nations, over 700,000 Israeli citizens are illegally occupying land in the West Bank.
Just this week, on August 28th, Israeli troops stormed into the various parts of northern West Bank, including Jenin, Tulkarm and al-Fara’a refugee camp, according to reporting by the Washington Post.
In their article, eyewitnesses state seeing drones in the sky, bulldozers ramming into buildings, and troops going door to door, making arrests; the raid caused the death of eleven Palestinians, although Israel claims they're all members of Hamas.
Americans using social media can see numerous videos of Palestinians crying over the bodies of their loved ones, expressing frustration at being displaced again and again. Aid is stopped at the checkpoints around Gaza and denied access. The water supply is tainted with disease and badly damaged.
During their rallies, Ahmad hears from others that the mainstream American media coverage is morally bankrupt and corrupt.
"They're no longer able to provide any truth, and we don't believe it. Honestly, this will have an impact on our society here in the U.S. for years to come. It's just very, very unfortunate the way the media is reporting things," Ahmad said.
WVIK asked Ahmad about the Democratic National Convention and their refusal to allow any of the uncommitted delegates, representing the will of their constituents, to speak on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.
He says lobbyists influence politicians, and their personal aspirations outweigh the need to listen to voters.
"It's just extremely hard to believe that all of those politicians hear from people in the U.S. who do not want war. We do not want our money going to kill Palestinians. We don't want to spend those dollars on weapons sales that we will never get reimbursed for," Ahmad said. "The U.S. is paying for all of that. At the same time, the cost of food and groceries has risen exponentially... This is one of the things that truly resonates with people here in the U.S. Both on the right and the left, people say our tax money should be spent here in the U.S."
Over the summer, the Quad Cities Coalition for Palestine held a BBQ picnic on June 8th, raising nearly $16,000 with the Humanitarian Operations and Public Education (HOPE) Foundation, which is located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The money is being used to build a temporary health center in Gaza, as most hospitals are either badly damaged or destroyed.
"And we're seeing some pictures of the building being constructed as a health unit, a health point for people in the Gaza area. The progress is going well. Recently, we partnered with Jewish Voice for Peace and hosted a virtual viewing of the documentary 'Israelism' for 200 people," Ahmad said.
WVIK asked Ahmad if he or others were threatened for their political actions. He says the Bettendorf, Davenport, and Moline police departments have helped monitor their rallies.
"We have to do our part. And honestly, the number of people opposing this is decreasing. It's hard to argue against the idea when we're not supporting Hamas or any other organization. We're not supporting a different country. We are all American citizens, from different ethnicities and religions. What unites us is the belief that those people should have the same rights as Israelis in Palestine," Ahmad said.
This story was produced by WVIK, Quad Cities NPR. We rely on financial support from our listeners and readers to provide coverage of the issues that matter to the Quad Cities region and beyond. As someone who values the content created by WVIK's news department, please consider making a financial contribution to support our work.
