Anti-Israel protest turns violent at summit

Shouting “Zionism is Racism” students pelted rocks, bricks and bottles at people leaving a Johannesburg college after a speech by Israeli foreign minister Shimon Peres.

Police fired water cannon to try to break up the demonstrators. Several people were wounded in the melee.

Around 100 students demonstrated yesterday, some shouting that Mr Peres had no right to be in South Africa. A policemen was stabbed in the leg by one of the demonstrators, a police spokesperson said.

Four protesters, a journalist from Qatar and two other policemen were wounded, the South African Press Association reported.

One person was hit in the head as they tried to leave after the speech, security personnel on the scene said.

An Associated Press Television News cameraman was also slightly injured, hit by a flying brick.

Clashes with the police left several demonstrators with blood steaming down their faces. Sixteen protesters were arrested.

Mr Peres said he did not understand why Israel had become a focus of protest as world leaders gathered to fight poverty and protect the environment.

“If the Palestinians want independence, we offered independence. If the Palestinians want a Palestinian state, we offered them a Palestinian state ... why violence? What for?” Mr Peres said. “We can’t understand those demonstrators.”

There has been a series of anti-Israeli demonstrations at the summit and a massive protest by civil society groups on Saturday was dominated by harsh criticism of Israel, but so far the debate on the Middle East has stayed in the streets and out of official discussions.

This is a sharp contrast to last year’s UN Conference on Racism, also in South Africa, where the Israel-Arab conflict dominated the agenda and world attention.

The Palestinian ambassador to South Africa, Salman el-Herfi, said it was natural people would protest against Israel at UN conferences.

“People are demonstrating against Israeli aggression and (because of) their anger against the crimes against the Palestinian people ordered by members of the Israeli government, among them Peres,” he said.

Mr Peres welcomed a European Union peace plan that aims to put the Middle East peace talks back on track and create a Palestinian state by 2005.

“I think it can help. Basically we are interested in a harmonisation of the European position and the American position,” he said. “But the real problem as I see it is not another peace plan, but a partner for peace.”