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\u2018Palestine will win\u2019: Sri Lanka businesses raise funds for war-ravaged Gaza | Israel-Palestine conflict News<\/p>\n
Colombo, Sri Lanka<\/strong> \u2013 On most days, the Dolci Falasteen restaurant in Sri Lanka\u2019s capital Colombo is quiet.<\/p>\n Located on a main road in a busy neighbourhood, the eatery is an escape from the busy mood of the city. Traditional Arabic lanterns cast a warm glow over its cosy dining area.<\/p>\n But on a Sunday afternoon, seven weeks after Israel launched its ruthless assault on Gaza, the restaurant that specialises in Palestinian cuisine is bustling with young entrepreneurs. They have united for a common cause: to raise funds for Palestine.<\/p>\n Aisha Altaf, a 24-year-old entrepreneur who runs a cosmetics business, is behind the fundraiser. The LURE Foundation, which she established recently, had offered other businesses a chance to put up stalls at the fundraiser and donate at least 10 percent of their proceeds to Gaza. Most vendors donated their whole income.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter constantly seeing graphic content of what\u2019s happening to the people in Gaza, I felt immense guilt for having the most basic things like sleeping on a bed, having water, and hot meals,\u201d Altaf told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is most definitely a genocide, and whoever cannot see it is simply choosing to ignore all the facts.\u201d<\/p>\n LURE Foundation has partnered with the Africa Muslims Agency, a humanitarian organisation set up in 1987, that will use the money to supply aid to Gaza. So far, they have received more than 2.1 million Sri Lankan rupees ($6,400) in donations and from the fundraiser.<\/p>\n \u201cWe plan to provide hot meals for the helpless victims. As winter is approaching, we are also providing winter jackets for children, especially those that are displaced and sleeping on the street,\u201d Altaf said.<\/p>\n At the event, 14-year-old Mumina Hilmy, clad in a black cloak with red and green stripes, is running her own stall with her mother\u2019s help. She is selling bracelets and key tags that she crocheted with the colours of the Palestinian flag.<\/p>\n \u201cI made these during my free time and recess at school,\u201d Hilmy told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n Miquelaa Fernando, 25, who bought a bracelet, said she is happy to support a bigger cause.<\/p>\n \u201cWe feel helpless when so many bigger organisations and governments haven\u2019t done anything to help other than the ceasefire [in Gaza]. By coming here, I felt this is something I could do to show some form of support,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n For entrepreneurs and visitors, the fundraiser \u2014 cosmetics, food, perfumes, toys and stationery were on sale \u2014 was a symbol of solidarity with Palestine.<\/p>\n Sajida Shabir, a 26-year-old restaurateur, sold home-made food like chicken rolls, cookies, chilli paste and mayonnaise under her brand Hungryislander\u2019s Kitchen. Her mother and sister were there to support her.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve donated through other platforms earlier. But rather than just donating money, I\u2019m putting in my effort here through sales. So it makes me feel good about it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Umar Farook, 56, who visited the stalls, said he would support Palestine whenever he could.<\/p>\n \u201cPalestinians have the right to live in their own country. The international community must make sure that happens. Palestine will win,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n When Sri Lanka was under British rule, the then-Chief Justice Sir Alexander Johnston had proposed to establish a Jewish settlement in the island, then known as Ceylon. But the proposal was not successful, according to a paper published by the Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies, an Israeli think tank, in 2021.<\/p>\n Since gaining independence in 1948, Sri Lanka established relations with both Israel and Palestine and has called for a two-state solution.<\/p>\n For three decades, Sri Lanka, a predominantly Buddhist nation, was at war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a group that fought for a separate state for Tamils in the northern and eastern parts of the country.<\/p>\n Uditha Devapriya, an international relations analyst, said Sinhalese nationalist groups who believe Sri Lanka is the chosen land for Buddhists have been sympathetic with the similar notions that Zionism has held with regards to Israel as the promised land for Jews.<\/p>\n But these groups, which have opposed international calls to probe alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka, see double standards in Western powers allowing Israel to get away with the mass killings in Gaza.<\/p>\n \u201cNow Sinhala nationalists are using the Gaza Strip tragedy to show the hypocrisy of the Western powers,\u201d Devapriya, chief analyst of international relations at Colombo-based think tank Factum, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a perfect opportunity for them to reflect on how the West treated Sri Lanka during the war while showing favourable treatment to Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n For several years, countries such as the United States that staunchly support Israel have backed United Nations resolutions calling for probes into alleged war crimes committed during Sri Lanka\u2019s war.<\/p>\n Earlier this month, President Ranil Wickremesinghe accused the West of double standards. \u201cWhat applies to us must also apply in Gaza,\u201d he had said.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, many Sri Lankan Tamils see parallels between Israel\u2019s deadly assault on Gaza \u2014 in which nearly 15,000 people have been killed \u2014 and\u00a0the final stages of the civil war during which the Sri Lankan government allegedly committed war crimes. The government denies the claims.<\/p>\n \u201cThe aggression on Gaza should be seen as similar to the killing of Tamils at Mullivaikal [where the final battle of the war occurred],\u201d Sri Prakas, joint secretary for the Mass Movement for Social Justice said in a statement.<\/p>\n Dozens of demonstrations have taken place in Sri Lanka opposing Israel\u2019s Gaza assault, which followed an attack by Hamas fighters on southern Israel on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed. At protests across Sri Lanka, people have marched with placards saying \u201cStop the Genocide\u201d and \u201cEnd Israeli Apartheid\u201d.<\/p>\n A continuing truce has seen dozens of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli captives released over the past six days, as Palestinians in Gaza return to their bombed homes and devastated cities.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n In the northern city of Jaffna, once a focal point of Sri Lanka\u2019s civil war, a group of Tamils held a protest calling for an end to the attacks.<\/p>\n Pro-Palestinian protesters were also there in their hundreds at a demonstration in Colombo, attended by leaders of the Buddhist, Christian, Muslim and Hindu faiths.<\/p>\n Father Lionel Peiris, who was part of a fact-finding mission sent by the World Council of Churches to Palestine during the first Intifada in the late 1980s, also protested.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen people are being slaughtered, and when their land and houses are being taken, look at it as humans. Feel sadness. Feel sorrow and anger. You can\u2019t let that happen,\u201d Peiris told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n \u201c[Benjamin] Netanyahu\u2019s government has completely dehumanised Palestinians. This can\u2019t go on.\u201d<\/p>\n Tassy Dahlan, an educational consultant, attended at least five protests in support of Palestine, including ones opposite the US embassy and the UN Compound in Colombo.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are Muslim, Christian and Jewish children who have been killed. Their lives have been snapped away because of the political agendas of some countries who are turning a blind eye to humanity,\u201d Dahlan told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n People have laid flowers, lit candles, tied ribbons and posted notes of solidarity at a memorial at the Palestine embassy in Colombo.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Melani Gunathilaka, a civil rights activist, has been battling disinformation about the conflict on social media.<\/p>\n \u201cGroups with money and power dictate the narratives. That\u2019s why I try to share verified information, and read the research done on these topics by experts, to set the record straight,\u201d Gunathilaka told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n Back at the Dolci Falasteen restaurant, as the fundraiser drew to a close, Altaf admitted feeling a \u201clittle less helpless\u201d \u2013 but then also expressed hope.<\/p>\n \u201cLet us embrace unity, collaboration and empathy. Together, we have the power to build a better future for all. Every action we take has a ripple effect, impacting lives beyond our own borders,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u0627\u0644\u0645\u0635\u062f\u0631<\/a>\u2018We feel helpless\u2019<\/h2>\n
Sri Lanka\u2019s stance on the conflict<\/h2>\n
Protests in solidarity with Palestine<\/h2>\n
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