Tens of thousands of Gazans on Dec 14 turned out for an anniversary rally of the ruling Hamas, a demonstration of strength for the movement ahead of Palestinian general elections tentatively set for the spring. The annual rally has become an increasingly elaborate exercise in stagecraft since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007 following internal fighting with forces loyal to Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
The crowd faced a huge stage in the shape of a ship, meant to symbolize the Palestinian journey of return to all the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean, including what is now Israel.
A large replica of Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque, built on the ruins of the biblical Jewish Temples, served as a backdrop. “Oh, Jerusalem, we are coming,” read one of the banners. Hamas lawmaker Mushir Al-Masri told the gathering that Hamas is “closer to liberating the holy land and holy shrines and closer to another great victory in coming elections.”