Protesters gather in support of Palestine at the corner of Main and University on Nov. 12 in Peoria.
BRIAN LUDWIG

The Associated Press reports the phrase “ ‘from the river to the sea,’ has become a battle cry with new power to roil Jews and pro-Palestinian activists in the aftermath of Hamas’ deadly rampage across southern Israel Oct. 7 and Israel’s bombardment of the Gaza Strip.”

The river is the Jordan River on the eastern border of Israel and occupied West Bank. The sea is the Mediterranean. Jewish people consider it a clear demand for Israel’s destruction, to eliminate Jews from the region. Hamas has said as much. The terrorist organization claims “Palestine is ours from the river to the sea and from the south to the north. There will be no concession on any inch of the land.”

But Peoria Imam Mazhar Mahmood says it’s a call for freedom for the Palestinian people throughout Israel, which has blockaded the Gaza Strip and continues to encroach on the West Bank. The AP states, “It’s a call for peace and equality after 75 years of Israeli statehood and military rule over millions of Palestinians.”

U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) has been censured by Congress for saying the phrase publicly, but defends her language this way: “From the river to the sea is an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction, or hate,” she tweeted.