By Eric Vandenbroeck and co-workers
Tens of thousands attended a rally near Gaza City
Saturday morning to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Islamist Palestinian
group Hamas. The group's leader, Khaled Meshaal, was present to address the
gathering on his first-ever visit to the area. The centerpiece of the rally is
a giant replica of the type of rocket Hamas fired at Jerusalem and Tel Aviv
during last month's conflict with Israel. The event is allegedly intended to be
a show of power for Hamas, which enjoys support in Gaza and hopes to reconcile
with its rival group Fatah, which has more control in the West Bank.
Others had gentler intentions. Two hours south of the
buzzing metropolis, in the sleepy kibbutz of Kfar Aza
near the Gaza border, Aviv and Livnat Kutz were hoping to spend the following
afternoon with their three teenage children and other likeminded locals flying
kites near the fence as a gesture of peace towards their Palestinian neighbors.
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