Palestinian activist Mohammed El-Kurd likened hijacking planes and other extreme acts of violence to more peaceful forms of protest, and complained that none of them were acceptable on a post on X, late Monday night.
"You can’t protest peacefully. You can’t boycott. You can’t hunger strike. You can’t hijack planes. You can’t block traffic. You can’t throw Molotovs. You can’t self-immolate. You can’t heckle politicians. You can’t march. You can’t riot. You can’t dissent. You just can’t be," he said in the post.
You can’t protest peacefully. You can’t boycott. You can’t hunger strike. You can’t hijack planes. You can’t block traffic. You can’t throw Molotovs. You can’t self-immolate. You can’t heckle politicians. You can’t march. You can’t riot. You can’t dissent. You just can’t be.
— Mohammed El-Kurd (@m7mdkurd) February 26, 2024
Shortly after posting, the unorthodox statement gained a lot of traction on X and warranted hundreds of replies, including from the Israeli government spokesman, Eylon Levy.
"Imagine associating your whole being with hijacking planes," Levy said in his response.
Imagine associating your whole being with hijacking planes. pic.twitter.com/ILny0xzkFl
— Eylon Levy (@EylonALevy) February 27, 2024
Mohammed El-Kurd made this post as a response to US airman Aaron Bushnell, who self-immolated in front of the Israeli embassy in New York while yelling "Free Palestine."
While many pro-Palestinian X users found Bushnell's actions very moving, others criticized it as signs of untreated mental health issues and an ineffective or inappropriate way to protest.
El-Kurd is known to make inflammatory statements
This isn't the first time El-Kurd has made controversial statements regarding the use of violence. Last month, he called on pro-Palestinian supporters to 'Normalize the massacres as the status quo' at a rally in London.
Mohammed El Kurd at the pro-terror rally in London today: “We must normalize massacres as the status quo” pic.twitter.com/J0SclN88IE
— Emily Schrader - אמילי שריידר امیلی شریدر (@emilykschrader) January 13, 2024
There have also been calls to revoke his Calgary Peace prize for praising a terrorist who killed three Israeli women in the Jordan Valley in April of 2023.
El-Kurd became well known for his prominent role in the #SaveSheikhJarrah movement, which protested the eviction of Palestinian families from their homes in east Jerusalem. He currently has over 380,000 followers on X.