The United States Pacific Fleet played host Thursday as the world’s largest maritime war games kicked off in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Rim of the Pacific, or RIMPAC, international maritime exercise brings together 25,000 military personnel from 29 countries, including Australia, Canada, South Korea, Japan, India, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and seven European nations. Israel will also be participating.

Israel’s inclusion has further angered peace activists, who say there’s a direct connection between Israel’s assault on Gaza and the exploitation of Hawaiian lands by the U.S. military. Rose Elovitz is with Jewish Voice for Peace-Hawaiʻi.

Rose Elovitz: “Palestine is a weapons testing ground for Israeli weapons that are exported throughout the world to buyers like Japan, France, Brazil, Australia and more, all of whom are active participants in this year’s RIMPAC. Like Gaza, Hawaii, too, is a testing ground for weapons and trainings. The bombs that are tested in the sacred Mākua Valley are the same bombs dropped in Gaza. The white phosphorus responsible for choking and burning innocent Palestinians to death is the same white phosphorus discharged in Mākua.”