Barcelona, Spain (AP) – Hundreds of thousands of Italians and Spaniards marched in Rome, Barcelona and Madrid on Saturday Israeli military campaign in Gaza On a show of growing international rage over the war two years ago.
Protests in almost all major Spanish cities were planned for weeks, but the protests in Rome followed widespread rage after the Israelites Intercepting the humanitarian support fleet They set sail from Barcelona to break the blockade of Palestinian territory.
Southern European protests come as Hamas said it accepted Some elements of the plan President Donald Trump laid it out to end the war. The biggest city in hunger And mixed it Genocide accusations against Israel.
Police in Rome said organizers said 250,000 people had attended 1 million people for the second day in a row of demonstrations in Italy. I’ve already seen Italy Over 2 million They will meet on Friday for a one-day general strike to support Palestinians in Gaza.
In Spain, officials said 100,000 people marched in Madrid and another 70,000 people were buried in downtown Barcelona. The Madrid March organizers raised attendance to 400,000, while the Barcelona organizers said 300,000 attended.
The protests were peaceful, but there was a clash between the police and hundreds of people just hours after the official Barcelona demonstrations ended.
The Spanish were called by activists to march in Valencia, Sevilla, Malaga and other cities.
Small gatherings were held in Paris, Lisbon, Athens and Skopje, North Macedonia and North Macedonia. In London and Manchester,England.
Roman protests criticize Meloni
The protests in Rome that followed the Colosseum route were organized by three Palestinian organisations, along with local unions and students.
In the square of San Giovanni, protesters praised the name of Italian Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on occupied Palestinian territory and critics of Israeli voices.
The organizers had requested that only the Palestinian flag be carried, but there were several banners praising the militant group. “October 7th, Palestinian Resistance Day,” October 7th, 2023, a reference to Israel’s Hamas attack that caused the war, another big flag read “Death, Death to the IDF,” a reference to the Israeli Defence Force. The group also chanted the same slogan, state broadcaster Rai reported.
Riccardo Magi, secretary of the PIU Europa (More Europe) party on the center left, was the secretary of the left European party, who was one of the marchers, and appointed the government of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to refuse to acknowledge the Palestinian state, following the examples of Spain, France, the UK and several other Western countries.
“Meloni cannot continue with this lewd victim. These are voluntary demonstrations against her government’s inaction and accomplice. She must admit this and begin working diplomatically for peace,” Magi told Italian media.
Big lary in Barcelona
Spain is rising sharply Support for Palestinians During the Left, last few weeks Government strengthens diplomatic efforts against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government. Protest against the existence of Israeli-owned cycling teams I repeatedly confused Spanish Vuelta Last month, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez The destruction of Gaza was called “genocide.” They then called for a ban on all Israeli teams from international sporting events.
The day of protest began in Barcelona as it was packed with the city’s main avenue, the wide Passage de Gracia, by noon. Many families flocked to Palestinian flags and joined people of all ages. The handheld signs depict messages such as “Gaza is hurting me”, “Stop genocide”, and “I’ve got a circle.”
More than 40 Spaniards, including the former mayor of Barcelona, were among the 450 activists Israel removed from its fleet boats this week.
Protests will not shake Israel’s government, but protesters hope to encourage other demonstrations and encourage European leaders to take more intense boundaries against Israel.
63-year-old Maria Jesus Para waving the Palestinian flag after an hour’s trip from another town to Barcelona. She hopes the European Union will oppose what she describes as the horror she watches on TV news.
“What should we do after what we (as Europe) experienced in the 1940s, and we are witnessing lifelong genocide happening?” Para said. “Now, no one can say they didn’t know what was going on.”
The Madrid people marched behind the banners reading “Shame” and “Racist War, Free Palestine” and chanted “Netanyahu (A) Killer.”
Greek police believe that a larger gathering and march will take place on Sunday. The two protests are separated by about three kilometers (2 miles) and, as previously, are at hand by police to prevent the pro-Palestinian march to the Israeli Embassy.
The war in Gaza began after the Hamas attack in October 2023, killing around 1,200 people and holding 251 others hostages. Israeli retaliatory attacks in Gaza have killed more than 67,000 people and injured nearly 170,000 people so far, according to Gaza’s health ministry. The ministry is part of Hamasran government. United Nations agencies and many independent experts consider the figures as the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.
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Paolo Santarsia reported from Rome. Demetris Neras contributed to this report from Athens, Greece.
