Masked gunmen from the militant Islamic Jihad group staged a pro-Syrian rally in the Gaza Strip on Friday, marching through Gaza City's main thoroughfare and burning Israeli and American flags. "The Palestinian people came out today to send a message that we reject the American plans in this region. We reject the American-Israeli plan to plant civil disturbances and discord in Palestine, Lebanon and Syria," said Mohammed al Hindi, an Islamic Jihad leader. Pro- and anti-Syrian demonstrations have jolted Lebanon since the Feb. 14 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, which the opposition has blamed on the Lebanese government and its Syrian backers. Both deny involvement. About 2,000 people showed up for the pro-Syrian demonstration in Gaza, including about 1,500 masked men and some 500 supporters who took to the streets after Friday prayers. The demonstrators carried effigies of US President George W. Bush and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon with the caption, "you have no place here." Demonstrators waved Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese flags tied together, and burned two Israeli and two US flags. The rally followed a demonstration in Beirut on Tuesday by the Lebanese guerrilla group Hezbollah that drew hundreds of thousands in a show of support for Syria's presence. |