By AFP, AP and Reuters14 May 2026
Israeli ultranationalists marching through Jerusalem’s Old City chanted “Death to Arabs” and “May your villages burn” during the annual Jerusalem Day parade, as many Palestinian residents stayed indoors and shuttered their shops.
Tens of thousands of Israelis – many of them teenagers and young adults – take part each year in the march, which Israeli authorities say celebrates the “reunification” of Jerusalem after Israel captured East Jerusalem during the 1967 war.
The annexation of East Jerusalem, home to a predominantly Palestinian population, was illegal under international law, according to the United Nations.
Over the years, the march has frequently descended into violence, with groups of mainly young ultranationalists targeting Palestinians with racist chants, intimidation and physical assaults. This year’s event took place against the backdrop of Israel’s war with Iran and a so-called “ceasefire” in Gaza, marked by near-daily violations by Israeli forces.
By late morning, most Palestinian shopkeepers in the Old City had pulled down their metal shutters and deserted the narrow stone alleyways. Some Israeli marchers banged on the closed shutters as they passed, while others clapped rhythmically and chanted.
Authorities at times order Palestinian businesses to close during the march, which culminates at the Western Wall, a Jewish holy site.
A small number of Palestinian-owned shops remained open under the protection of activists from Standing Together, an Israeli-Palestinian grassroots movement that deployed volunteers across the Old City to try to shield residents and businesses from harassment.
“Our presence is to just protect people from being attacked, places from being vandalised. And we try to de-escalate this day,” said Rula Daoud, the group’s co-director, who noted that the march was becoming more violent every year. She accused Israeli police of failing to intervene to curb the abuses.
“This day, thousands of basically settlers and right-wing fascist young and older people will be roaming the streets chanting very racist things, trying to destroy places owned by Palestinians and just terrorising the whole place,” she said.
Journalists covering the march also faced hostility, with some reporters shoved and blocked from filming by participants, according to local media.
