BERNARD SHAW, CNN ANCHOR: Protests, strikes and calls for statehood marked a bitter anniversary for Palestinians and Arab Israelis Thursday, as annual Land Day demonstrations were held in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. CNN Jerusalem bureau chief Walter Rodgers has more.</s>WALTER RODGERS, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): They marked Land Day, these Israeli Arabs, Palestinians who stayed in Israel after 1948. It's an annual protest against continuing Israeli expropriation of land the day Israeli troops killed six Arabs during land demonstrations 44 years ago. It's become a broader protest for Israeli Arabs as well as Palestinians to air their grievances. Israeli land confiscation, Jewish settlement building on what they see is their land, and discrimination against Arabs. In Bethlehem, a little a little over a week after Pope John Paul II preached peace, Palestinian guns were back on the streets. Cries for "jihad," or holy war, were heard. Heard also, the fire of Israeli forces firing rubber-coated steel bullets at Palestinians. Also heard the cries of the wounded injured by Israeli rubber bullets and tear gas. More than a few Arabs were injured in Land Day clashes. Another generation of Arab children raised nursing a grudge against Israelis. In East Jerusalem, massive security kept demonstrations more peaceful. (on camera): These Land Day protests seem to have lost some of their intensity from a decade ago when there were massive revolts and street demonstrations. Perhaps the peace process dissolved some of the anger, but it has not eliminated Arab frustration.</s>HARMAN ASHRAWI, PALESTINIAN COUNCIL MEMBER: This is a powder keg, and anything, any spark, could lead to an explosion. People are extremely angry, very unhappy, dissatisfied, and they've lost faith in the peace process.</s>RODGERS (voice-over): So far, what is burning are Israeli flags and cardboard bulldozers, hated symbols of Jewish settlement building. What is not clear is whether this was a one-day protest or the beginning of a long, hot spring. Walter Rodgers. CNN, Jerusalem.
Protests, Strikes and Calls for Statehood Mark Bitter Land Day Anniversary for Palestinians and Arab Israelis