By Enrico Di Gregorio

“This is the Congress that will defeat genocide and put Zionism in its place”.

SAO PAULO – These were the words of the President of the Palestinian Arab Federation of Brazil (Fepal), Ualid Rabah, to more than 500 people, including members of the Brazilian Arab and Palestinian community, activists and journalists, at the opening of the Federation’s 11th Congress in São Paulo, Brazil, on Friday.

Brazil has a population of 200,000 Palestinians and between 6 and 13 million Arabs.

More than 60 percent of the Brazilian population has an unfavorable view of the State of Israel, according to a February 2024 poll. This is a huge number of people mobilizing in demonstrations, occupations and other forms of protest in support of the Palestinian people and against the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

Founded in 1979 to represent the Palestinian diaspora in Brazil, Fepal brings together more than 60,000 immigrants, refugees and their families.

The 11th Congress was called by the current leadership 11 months after the start of the new stage of the genocide in Gaza. Its focus is Genocide and Apartheid: The Role of the Palestinian-Brazilian Diaspora in the Liberation of Palestine.

11° Congresso da Fepal abre credenciamento para a imprensa

Saiba como se inscrever em nosso site: https://t.co/YO6NOKNq1N

📸: Quarto Congresso da FEPAL, 1986. pic.twitter.com/6nQkazwMEy

— FEPAL – Federação Árabe Palestina do Brasil (@FepalB) August 30, 2024

‘Great Task’

“We have a great task, which is to defeat Zionism,” Rabah told a reporter from the Brazilian newspaper A Nova Democracia, who was also covering the event for the Palestine Chronicle.

“This congress has a characteristic: it’s the first congress we’ve held while our Nakba is happening for the second time. It’s like holding the Congress in 1947 or 1948,” Rabah said.

He emphasized that this scenario made the Congress “the most important in our history”, and the number of people mobilized sealed it as “the largest gathering of Palestinians on the continent”.

The gathering opened with the broadcast of the Palestinian national anthem, to which all present stood up in honor.

A video about the ongoing genocide in Gaza was then played, depicting images of Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, Zionist atrocities covered up by the mainstream press and solidarity activities in Brazil, while a narration recapped the Palestinian struggle over the past months.

‘An End to the Lies’

In his speech, Ualid stressed that the Congress represented “the diaspora in this immense country that is Brazil”.

“For Palestine to be free from genocide, apartheid, extermination, the final solution, ethnic cleansing, colonialism, throughout its territory, inch by inch until oppression ends,” he emphasized.

Also present were Palestine’s ambassador to Brazil, Ibrahim Alzeben, Iraq’s Firas Hassan Hashim al-Hammadany and Libya’s Osama Ibrahim Ayad Sawan, as well as activists, representatives of organizations, religious leaders and other groups.

The representative of the Federation of Arab Brazilian Entities (Fearab) argued that the Congress’ task was to “defeat Zionism” and “put an end to the lies”.

“Genocídio é genocídio, independente de fé religiosa, ideologia ou posicionamento politico”.

Vale assistir esse trecho da fala de Ualid Rabah, presidente da FEPAL, em audiência no Congresso Nacional. pic.twitter.com/RJnr8fft4r

— FEPAL – Federação Árabe Palestina do Brasil (@FepalB) November 7, 2023

“Zionism is supported by our governments,” the representative proclaimed.

Other speakers said that the Congress was proof that the Palestinian community is mobilized and that solidarity with the Palestinian people is a necessary path.

The Congress will be held for three days, concluding on September 22.

Over 41,000 Killed

Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.

Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.

According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 41,391 Palestinians have been killed, and 95,760 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.

‘Unprecedented Crimes’ – Israeli Airstrike on School Kills Scores, Including Children, Fetus

 

Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.

Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.

Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.

The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.

The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.

Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.

(The Palestine Chronicle)