Palestinian activists throw shoes at a poster of US President Barack Obama in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Monday, March 18, 2013. Some two dozen Palestinian activists protested the upcoming Obama visit. Obama’s trip to Jerusalem and the West Bank will take place March 20-22, and it is the U.S. leader’s first trip to the region as president, and his first overseas trip since being reelected. (AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)
JERUSALEM (AP) — Palestinians have vandalized a banner bearing President Barack Obama’s image just days before his visit.
The Palestinians tore down the banner, hurled shoes at it and spray painted it with swastikas. Associated Press TV video showed a taxi driving over the banner before it was set on fire in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Monday.
Obama arrives in Israel on Wednesday. He heads to the West Bank Thursday.
The banner with Obama’s picture is among many hung by activists, asking the president to take note of the lack of 3G frequencies in the West Bank. Israeli authorities control cellular networks there and they have not granted Palestinian telecommunication companies 3G.
The Palestinians have long felt aggrieved by the U.S., accusing it of being biased toward Israel.
