LONDON (AP) — Thousands of people joined vigils in Berlin and London on Sunday to oppose antisemitism and support Israel, while in Paris and other cities, thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators demanded a ceasefire and aid for residents. in the besieged Gaza Strip.
Some of those gathered in front of Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate carried Israeli flags or posters with pictures of more than 200 people seized by Hamas as hostages during the militants’ deadly October 7 invasion of Israel.
“It is unbearable that Jews live in fear anymore today – in our country of all places,” President Frank-Walter Steinmeier told the crowd, estimated at 20,000 by organizers and 10,000 by police. “Every attack against Jews, against Jewish institutions is a shame for Germany. Every attack makes me feel ashamed and angry.”
Earlier, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz inaugurated a new synagogue in the eastern city of Dessau and said he was “furious” at the rise in antisemitism since the conflict began.
Several buildings in Berlin where Jews live had stars of David painted on doors and walls, and attackers threw two Molotov cocktails at a synagogue in Berlin last week.
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Berlin to protest anti-semitism.AP
“Here in Germany, of all places,” said Scholz, vowing that “‘never again’ we must be unbreakable.”
At a vigil attended by thousands in London’s Trafalgar Square, participants held posters bearing images of hostages and missing people. They chanted “bring them home,” falling silent as the names of the hostages were read.
Speakers from both the UK Conservative Party and the opposition Labor Party addressed the crowd. Communities Secretary Michael Gove said the Hamas attack on October 7 was an act of “unparalleled evil and barbarity”.
In London, thousands gathered for a vigil for those kidnapped by Hamas. The crowd observed a moment of silence as the names were read aloud.AP
“We must stand together against it. We must stand for life. We must bring home the hostages,” he said.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the UN office in Geneva to demand the release of the hostages. Waving mostly Israeli flags, but also Swiss and German ones, protesters held aloft signs reading “Children don’t bargain” or T-shirts with the words #SetThemFree.
Elsewhere in Switzerland, about 4,500 pro-Palestinian protesters marched in the city of Lausanne, police said.
The war has created tensions around the world, leaving Jewish and Muslim communities feeling vulnerable. London’s Metropolitan Police force said it had seen a 13-fold increase in reports of antisemitic offenses in October compared to last year. Reports of anti-Muslim crimes more than doubled.
As the war raged, there was an explosion in reports of both antisemitic and anti-Muslim crimes. AP
Sunday’s rally came a day after tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters – 100,000 according to police estimates – marched through the British capital to demand Israel end its bombardment of Gaza, launched in response to a brutal Hamas incursion.
Authorities in Gaza say more than 4,600 people have been killed in the territory since the latest war began. More than 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, the majority of them civilians killed in the Oct. 7 attack.
Israel is intensifying its bombardment of Gaza ahead of an expected ground attack. United Nations officials are urging more humanitarian aid to enter the besieged area, after 20 trucks were allowed to enter Gaza on Saturday across Rafah’s southern border with Egypt.
The pro-Palestinian rally had as many as 100,000 demonstrators, according to Polis.AP
In France, which has Europe’s largest Jewish and Muslim communities, thousands of protesters gathered in Paris to demand that Israel end its offensive on Gaza. Police estimated 15,000 people took part.
Some waved red, green and black Palestinian flags and climbed to the central statue of the Republique plaza. A banner reading “Stop the massacre in Gaza. France must call for an immediate ceasefire.”
Organizers – including Palestinian and Islamist groups, peace associations, labor and student unions and leftist political parties – condemned Hamas’ attacks on civilians, called on the militant group to release all hostages and called for an end to Israeli attacks.
Sarah Alaoui, a 23-year-old French student of Moroccan descent, said she came to “support the Palestinian people who have suffered for too long.”
“Humanitarian aid is not enough. The Palestinian people need to be able to live a good life and have their own country,” he said.
Nicole Pomier, a 49-year-old Parisian and longtime activist, said she was relieved the protest was not banned by the authorities.
“We want to be able to support the Palestinian people without risking being caught by the police,” he said.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin has ordered all pro-Palestinian demonstrations to be banned, before authorities decide permission for protests should be decided locally on a case-by-case basis.
Jewish groups are planning a rally in Paris later Sunday to call for the release of the Hamas hostages.
A crowd estimated at 12,000 by police gathered outside European Union institutions in Brussels for a rally organized by groups including trade unions, Christian organizations and the Arab solidarity movement.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin tried to ban pro-Palestinian demonstrations until authorities decided that permission should be granted on a case-by-case basis.AP
Several thousand people took to the streets in Sarajevo, with some comparing the situation in Gaza to the suffering of Bosnians, who are mostly Muslim, during the country’s 1992-95 war.
“What happened in Gaza is just a human disaster. Collective punishment. War crimes. These things need to be called by their rightful names,” said Nabil Naser, a Palestinian doctor who worked in Sarajevo during the Bosnian war.
Hundreds also gathered in the Serbian capital, Belgrade, and in Podgorica, the capital of neighboring Montenegro.
Pro-Palestinian protesters gathered around the world to protest Israel’s treatment of Gaza.AP
More than 3,000 people attended a “Freedom for Palestine” rally on Sunday in a square in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Malaysia is a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause, and has no diplomatic relations with Israel. Muslims in the country have held weekly rallies after Friday prayers outside the American Embassy, slamming the US for its support for Israel.
Retired Munir Izwan urged Palestinian neighbors to step up efforts to help.
“Even in Islamic teachings, the nearest neighbor should help the most in reconciling the two parties. But what I see, the neighboring countries of Palestine, they only talk but there is no action,” said Munir.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
