7 October: Palestinian Youth Day – the massacre dubbed ‘resistance’, in the classroom and on the streets

For the Young Palestinians of Bologna, the massacres, rapes and kidnappings of 7 October 2023 were “one of the most significant actions of the Palestinian Resistance”. They write this – with a capital ‘R’ – in the post announcing tonight’s event: a debate and a screening of the film “Palestina 36”, set during the Arab revolt against the British Mandate. The title of the event is ‘7 October, from 1936 to the present day’. On the poster, to avoid any misunderstanding, it reads ‘From the Great Arab Revolt to 7 October’, as if there were a straight line connecting the two dates. The event is taking place in the Capecchi lecture theatre, with the entrance at 32 Via Zamboni, in the heart of the university district. The University of Bologna has refused authorisation, but the organisers continue to indicate that entrance will be available “until 7.15 pm”. Initially, the event was scheduled for 7 pm. Then, with a green band on the poster, it was “brought forward to 6.30 pm”. This is the same time at which, just a few hundred metres away in Piazza San Domenico, the Progressive Jewish Community of Bologna has organised a vigil “against hatred and terrorism, for remembrance and peace”. A commemorative ceremony will be held this evening in the city’s synagogue.

The collective’s post explains the significance of the evening. The film, they write, shows the role of British colonialism “in handing over Palestinian lands to the new Zionist colonisers”, and “ninety years on, the players are the same”. Then comes the thesis: “From generation to generation, Palestinians – men and women alike – resist, by every means possible, against colonial occupation. 7 October 2023 is an example, and a stage, of a struggle that began ninety years ago and will continue until liberation from the river to the sea’. The text makes no mention of the 1,200 dead, nor of the hostages, nor of the Nova Festival. Instead, it refers to the Romeo bill on anti-Semitism, described as an attempt to suppress opposition to the “Zionist colonial and genocidal regime” by using “the infamous accusation of anti-Semitism”.

The calendar doesn’t stop at today. Tomorrow, the Palestinian Youth have announced a rally in Ravenna, in Piazza del Popolo. On Saturday 10 October, a demonstration is planned in Piazza del Nettuno, in Bologna, under the slogan ‘The end of genocide is the end of Zionism’. The call-to-action post concludes with “Long live the Palestinian Resistance”, “Glory to the martyrs” and “Palestine free from the river to the sea”. Last year, on the same day, the same collective had organised a demonstration under the slogan “Long live 7 October”. It had been banned, but clashes broke out anyway.

In Turin, the call to action comes from Brahim Baya, the Islamic preacher who has already caused controversy in recent months for his praise of Iranian missiles. On the anniversary, he wrote: “Three years of genocide. 78 years of resistance. Gaza has changed us and the world”. The dates may not fully align (ninety years according to the Young Palestinians and seventy-eight according to Baya), but the circled date is the same: the event is on the 10th in Piazza Castello, a day of national mobilisation. Also in Turin, the Network for Gaza and other committees organised a debate at the Einaudi Campus, one of the university’s sites, entitled “Tre anni di genocidio, tre anni di resistenza”.

Elsewhere, the police have intervened. Demonstrations by the Palestinian Youth Movement scheduled for today in Bergamo, Lecco, Lucca and Vicenza have been banned. In Lecco, the gathering was due to take place at 6 pm in Piazza Cermenati, followed by a march through the town centre. The ban was notified on 5 October, following a meeting of the Provincial Committee for Public Order and Security. The reason given was the international context and the risk that the march might provoke “reactions from ideologically opposed quarters”. The organisers publicised this on social media, with a green banner on the poster reading: “Banned by the Police Headquarters”. The security measures had been decided on 1 October at the Ministry of the Interior. The National Committee for Public Order and Security, chaired by Matteo Piantedosi and comprising senior police and intelligence officials, has ordered “a further strengthening of security measures”, with particular attention to sites linked to Israel and Jewish culture, starting with the Rome Ghetto. According to the authorities’ assessments, unlike in previous years, there are no specific threats. But the anniversary is being marked nonetheless: Jewish communities behind security cordons, and activist groups in university spaces.