Israelis chant 'death to Arabs' in annual 'Dance of the Flags' march through Jerusalem

Australia Broadcast Center

26-05-2025

Young Israeli nationalists have torn through Jerusalem's Old City chanting "death to Arabs" and harassing Palestinians ahead of the yearly commemorations for the capturing of East Jerusalem by Israel.
Thousands took part in the Jerusalem Day "Dance of the Flags", marching to Damascus Gate and onwards to the Western Wall on a hot Monday evening.
The event is provocative to the Palestinian population, given it marks the anniversary of Israel seizing East Jerusalem and the Old City during the 1967 war, and the group marches through the Muslim Quarter of the Old City demanding the Arab population leave.
In the shadow of the Gaza war, one of the most prominent banners held by those marching read "Jerusalem in our hands, 1967. Gaza in our hands, 2025".
In the hours before the march arrived at the Old City, right-wing nationalists were already wandering the narrow, winding streets and harassing people inside the city walls.
One teenager tried to set fire to a small copy of the Koran near Damascus Gate, proudly displaying his inflammatory act to his friends.
Another group set upon a number of Palestinian women, surrounding and spitting on them while making noises like monkeys or chimps, while an elderly man was knocked to the ground and needed help from paramedics.
Many of the nationalists remonstrated with members of the media, trying to push cameras out of the way while they tore through the streets.
Police used pepper spray to force some to scatter.
They chanted "death to Arabs", "may your village burn" and "the people of Israel live".
Volunteers from Standing Together, an Israeli-Palestinian peace and social justice organisation, were stationed throughout the city trying to calm the crowds — sometimes putting themselves between the Israeli nationalists and members of the Palestinian community.
One woman, named Inayat, said it was her birthday and she had been travelling to the Al-Aqsa mosque on the Temple Mount.
"I came and everyone spat on me," she said with saliva visible on her headscarf.
"Why, I do not know. I did nothing, it's not OK what they did."
Israeli Yair Sussman was among those marching, and insisted Palestinians needed to move out of the city — even if it was a slow process.
"Eventually, all of Jerusalem will be ours," he said.
"The people of Israel are not afraid of a long route."
Most of the Palestinian stores in the Old City closed down ahead of the march to avoid being targeted by the nationalists.
Mohammad Abdeen was one of the store owners hoping to stay open despite the threat from the Israelis marching through the Old City.
"Here in my store, they broke some of my goods last year, one of them stole things from my store, but we can't just close and leave the city for them — we have to remain steadfast," he said.
"Everyone is very stressed and angry about this situation, because it's not a comfortable situation.
"At any time, something unexpected may happen — God willing, everything will be fine."
Peace activists were also wandering through the city, handing out fresh flowers to people.
"That's the symbol that Jerusalem stands for, the universe.
"It is the city that is a symbol for a possibility of a different way of living."
Israel's controversial far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, was mobbed by the crowds at the Damascus Gate when he arrived in the early evening.
He is one of the loudest voices in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet demanding, among other things, an expansion of settlements in the West Bank and the continuation of the war in Gaza.
Earlier in the day, he had travelled to the Temple Mount precinct — which is solely reserved for Muslim worship — and insisted it was government policy to overturn that rule.
"There are truly many Jews flooding the Temple Mount — how nice to see that," he said in a video posted on social media.
"Today, thanks to God, it is possible to pray on the Temple Mount, to bow on the Temple Mount, we thank God for that.
"And we will continue, continue, continue — we are here in prayer for the safety of the hostages, that they all return home safely, for victory in the war."
On Jerusalem Day, Mr Netanyahu held a special cabinet meeting in East Jerusalem.
"We never forget Jerusalem," he said.
"Jerusalem, the bird of our soul, is the heart of the nation.
"If you remove the heart from the body, the body will not exist, and therefore we will not allow anyone to remove Jerusalem from our hands."
The status of Jerusalem is one of the most divisive issues in the discussion about a two-state solution in the Middle East, with both Israelis and Palestinians believing it is intrinsically linked to their identity.
Most countries do not recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel because of that unsettled debate.