"As an alderperson in northwestern Spain, Rosana Prieto tends to the running of her tiny village and is far removed from major cities, often rocked by protests over geopolitical issues. But with one of the world's biggest cycling races coursing through the bucolic hills nearby, she and hundreds of like-minded townspeople sensed a chance to make their small voices heard, denouncing Israel's military campaign in Gaza."
"Palestinian flags in hand, they stood precisely where they knew the television cameras would broadcast their message to the world: the last turn before the finish line of the 15th stage, as cyclists of the Spanish Vuelta whirred past. Further up the road, a protester carrying a Palestinian flag got too close to the speeding peloton and caused a pair of cyclists to crash."
Rural villagers in northwestern Spain used the Spanish Vuelta as an international platform to protest Israel's military campaign in Gaza, positioning themselves at televised points like the final turn before a stage finish. Protesters carried Palestinian flags and targeted an Israeli-owned cycling team, with one demonstrator causing a crash after approaching the peloton. Multiple stages have been cut short or interrupted, and police detained over 20 people. Spain's left-wing government has offered tacit endorsement of the demonstrations, moving toward one of Europe's strongest positions against Israel. Israel has defended its actions and accused Spain of supporting Hamas.
Read at www.npr.org
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]