Gaza children unleash balloons into sky, demand end to Israeli blockade

By Nour Abu Eisha

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday appealed for ending the 15-year long Israeli blockade on the seaside territory.

This came during a demonstration against the blockade organized by Palestinian factions in front of the Beit Hanoun-Erez border crossing in northern Gaza Strip.

During the protest, children released balloons in the sky in a sign of their aspiration for freedom. They also raised the Palestinian flag, along with banners with slogans reading, "Save our childhood," and "We are the children of Palestine...we are the oppressed in our land."

In a speech delivered on behalf of the children participating in the event, Ahmed Abu Askar, a Palestinian child, said: "Israeli crimes continue against the Gaza Strip, depriving us as children from living a normal life."

"They blockaded us, besieged our lives, robbed us of our freedom, and deprived us of a comfortable life and our basic rights," he said.

The Palestinian child also called on international organizations and human rights to "prosecute the Israeli occupation” and for the necessity of "supporting the children of Gaza who reject the injustice imposed on them."

* Writing by Mahmoud Barakat