Thousands gather in DC for global day of protests
Justice in the Hague, Netherlands, to take up the case.
Dan Devries, a New York resident, said he attended the protest because he wants to see a free Gaza, but that he wouldn’t vote for either Biden or possible Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
“I see this war as part of the U.S.’s drive to offset its economic decline by engaging in continual war,” said Devries.
Washington resident Phil Kline held up a sign calling for Pope Francis to excommunicate Biden.
“I know he’s a devout Catholic. Maybe he will take this issue seriously when the pope removes him from the church. There’s no justification for bombing civilians,” Kline said, though he added he still intends to vote for Biden in the November elections.
Medea Benjamin, a cofounder of anti-war group CodePink, said the moniker “Genocide Joe” will stick with Biden for a certain segment of the community because of his handling of the war in Gaza.
“I think the Democrats are playing with fire in many ways — playing with fire in that they’re supporting a genocide in Gaza but also playing with fire in terms of their own future,” Benjamin said.
Jake and Ida Braford, a young couple from Richmond, Virginia, who brought their two small children to the protest, said they were unsure of whether to vote for Biden in November.
“We’re pretty disheartened,” Ida Braford said. “Seeing what is happening in Gaza, and the government’s actions makes me wonder, what is our vote worth?”
The plight of children in the Gaza Strip was the focus of the latest London march, symbolized by the appearance of Little Amal, an 11.5foot puppet originally meant to highlight the suffering of Syrian refugees.
The puppet became a human rights emblem during a 4,970-mile journey from the Turkish-Syrian border to Manchester, England, in July 2001.
Nearly two-thirds of the 23,843 people killed during Israel’s campaign in Gaza have been women and children, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Israel declared war in response to Hamas’ unprecedented cross-border attack on Oct. 7 in which the Islamic militant group killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 250 others hostage.
“On Saturday Amal walks for those most vulnerable and for their bravery and resilience,” said Amir Nizar Zuabi, artistic director of The Walk Productions. “Amal is a child and a refugee and today in Gaza childhood is under attack, with an unfathomable number of children killed. Childhood itself is being targeted. That’s why we walk.”
London’s Metropolitan Police force said some 1,700 officers would be on duty for the march, including many from outside the capital.
Home Secretary James Cleverly said he had been briefed by police commissioner Sir Mark Rowley on plans to “ensure order and safety” during the protest.
A number of conditions were imposed on the march, including a directive that no participant in the protest should venture near the Israeli Embassy.
The London march was one of several held in European
cities including Paris, Rome, Milan and Dublin.
A pro-Israel rally was set to take place in London on Sunday. Meanwhile, families of hostages held in the Gaza Strip kicked off a 24-hour rally in Tel Aviv Saturday night, calling on the government to bring their loved ones home after 100 days spent in Hamas captivity.
Thousands of people poured into “Hostages Square” in Tel Aviv — a central plaza opposite Israel’s Defense Ministry that has served as a gathering point for the campaigners.