Anti-Islam Hindutva extremists hold pro-Israel rally in India

A video showing a group of people in India rallying and chanting pro-Israel slogans widely circulated on social media. The crowd was seen holding Israeli and Indian flags.

In the viral video, the crowd chanted, "Israel tum sangharsh karo hum tumhare saath hain [Israel, go to war; we stand with you]”. 

The demonstrators can also be heard raising racist slogans against Arabs, chanting, "Arab ka jo yar hai, ghaddar hai, ghaddar hai [Those who are friends with Arabs are traitors]”

However, it remains unclear where the demonstration took place in India.

Pro Israel rally In India#AlleyesonRafah pic.twitter.com/n4ZkbonXge

— Eminent Woke (@WokePandemic) May 30, 2024

Many Indians condemned the protest while offering their full support to the victims of Israeli genocide in Gaza and criticising Islamophobic sentiment.

Recently, after Israel's deadly assault on the Rafah camps sparked outrage on social media, several Bollywood stars expressed their solidarity with Palestine by sharing the "All Eyes on Rafah" template on their Instagram stories.

However, the widespread solidarity with the victims of the Israeli assault in Gaza triggered a reaction from Hindu radicals, commonly referred to as Sanghis, who are aligned with India's far-right, pro-Israel ruling party. 

They targeted those celebs and forced some to delete their posts. The Hindutva radicals drew illogical comparisons between alleged violent incidents against Hindus and the major destruction in Gaza by Zionists.

Pro-Israel rallies have been organized by extremists affiliated with Hindutva parties following the intensification of Israel’s assault on Gaza after October 7.

Israel's ambassador to India, Naor Gilon, stated on October 8 that he had received several requests from Indians offering to voluntarily fight for Israel.

However, in BJP-ruled states such as Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and the capital New Delhi, displays of solidarity with Palestinians have been immediately suppressed by the police.

Two clerics in Uttar Pradesh were arrested for sharing a WhatsApp status that read, "I stand with Palestine," which was deemed as promoting enmity between social groups.

The crackdown on pro-Palestine demonstrations also took place in Karnataka, ruled by Congress.

Despite recognising Israel in 1950, India has historically been pro-Palestine in its foreign policy and became the first non-Arab country to recgonise the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) in 1974.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, India established formal relations with Tel Aviv in 1992. However, India's foreign policy has become markedly pro-Israel since Narendra Modi strengthened his control over public discourse by fostering xenophobia towards Muslims and other religious and ethnic minorities.

Narendra Modi was the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel in 2017, and Benjamin Netanyahu reciprocated by visiting India in 2018. Modi was also among the first leaders to condemn Hamas’ October 7 attacks.