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LSU students join in Free Speech Alley on one-year anniversary of Israel-Hamas conflict
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BATON ROUGE - A year after Hamas’ attack on Israel, LSU students gathered in Free Speech Alley outside of the Student Union to protest involvement on both sides of the conflict.
Across the country, college students have been outspoken for Palestinians and Israelites affected by the ongoing war.
Pro-Palestinian and Pro-Israel students engaged in a debate on the subject. Pro-Israel student Gabriella Magenhein says her friend was murdered while attending the Nova Festival and feels that Israel should fight against terrorism.
"I know people who are being held hostage right now in the tunnels of Gaza and I believe in the right of Israel defending itself against any acts of terrorism," Magenhein said.
Other students like Mohammad Ahmad and Kareem Qaradeh have family in the West Bank and Gaza. They say they are advocating for the people who are being wrongfully detained in the areas.
"I've seen with my own eyes Israeli soldiers barge into my city and go in homes at four in the morning, break the doors and arrest people," Qaradeh said.
"The only reason I'm here is because Israel bombed our homes. We have no homes to go back to," Ahmad said.
There are Pro-Palestinian and Pro-Israel advocates calling for peace.
"Most people want peace. If we sit and have conversations, we'll find that out. That's how we'll work to find peace," Luke Prest said.
"We don't want harm to the other side. We want peace. We want our people back. We want to go back to our homes," Ahmad said.
A couple of students feel choosing a side is detrimental.
"I don't think anybody should die for something as simple as land and religion," Chris Sherry said.
"It creates conflict. More than we need. We should just be people for people. I'm a Zionist, I support Israel, but I also support Palestinians right to self-determination," Prest said.
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