London, Berlin march for Palestine
Tens of thousands join pro-Palestinian rallies • Activists break into UK's largest airbase
LONDON: Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters marched in London and Berlin on Saturday calling for an end to the war in Gaza, amid concerns that the Iran-Zionist conflict could spark wider regional devastation. Protesters in the British capital waved Palestinian flags, donned keffiyeh scarves and carried signs including 'Stop arming Israel' and 'No war on Iran' as they marched in the sweltering heat.
'It's important to remember that people are suffering in Gaza. I fear all the focus will be on Iran now,' said 34-year-old Harry Baker, attending his third pro-Palestinian protest. 'I don't have great love for the Iranian regime, but we are now in a dangerous situation,' he added. There have been monthly protests in the British capital since the start of the 20-month-long war between the Zionist entity and Hamas, which has ravaged Gaza.
Saturday's march comes amid heightened global tensions as the United States mulls joining the Zionist entity's strikes against Iran. Cries of 'Palestine will be free' rang out as protesters carried signs saying 'Hands off Gaza' or 'Stop starving Gaza'. Gaza is suffering from famine-like conditions according to UN agencies in the region following a Zionist aid blockade.
(Left) Protesters wave Palestinian and Iranian flags and hold placards as they gather in Russell Square to take part in a march through central London on June 21, 2025. (Right) People attend a demonstration in front of the Reichstag on June 21, 2025 in Berlin to express solidarity with the population of the Gaza Strip. - AFP photos
Gaza's civil defense agency has reported that hundreds have been killed by Zionist forces while trying to reach the US- and Zionist-backed aid distribution sites. 'People need to keep their eyes on Gaza. That's where the genocide is happening,' said 60-year-old protester Nicky Marcus. 'I feel frustrated, angry because of what's happening in Gaza,' said 31-year-old data analyst Jose Diaz. 'It's in everyone's eyes. It's still on after so many months,' Diaz added.
The overall death toll in Gaza since the war broke out has reached at least 55,637 people, according to the health ministry. A 31-year-old Iranian student who did not want to share her name, told AFP she had family in Iran and was 'scared'. 'I'm worried about my country. I know the regime is not good but it's still my country. I'm scared,' she said.
In Berlin, more than 10,000 people gathered in the center of the city in support of Gaza, according to police figures. 'You can't sit on the sofa and be silent. Now is the time when we all need to speak up,' said protestor Gundula, who did not want to give her second name. 'Germany finances, Israel bombs' was among the chants from the crowd, which gathered mid-afternoon close to the German parliament. For Marwan Radwan, the point of the protest was to bring attention to the 'genocide currently taking place' and the 'dirty work' being done by the German government.
Meanwhile, British media reported that the UK government was planning to ban a pro-Palestinian campaign group, which on Friday broke into the UK's largest air force base and vandalized two planes. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper was planning to begin the process on Monday to proscribe Palestine Action — effectively designating it a terrorist organization and making it illegal to join, according to UK media. Britain has announced sanctions against two Zionist cabinet ministers, suspended free-trade negotiations with the Zionist entity and summoned its ambassador over the conduct of the war in Gaza. It has also urged de-escalation in the Iran-Zionist war, while expressing concerns about Tehran's nuclear program. — AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab Times
an hour ago
- Arab Times
Nations react to US strikes on Iran with calls for diplomacy
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, June 22, (AP): The U.S. strike on Iran fueled fears that Israel's war with Tehran could escalate to a wider regional conflict, and other countries began reacting Sunday with calls for diplomacy and words of caution. President Donald Trump had said Thursday that he would decide within two weeks whether to get involved. In the end, it took just days, and Washington inserted itself into Israel's campaign with its early Sunday attack. It remained unclear early on how much damage had been inflicted, but Iran had pledged to retaliate if the U.S. joined the Israeli assault. Some have questioned whether a weakened Iran would capitulate or remain defiant and begin striking with allies at U.S. targets scattered across the Gulf region. Here is a look at reactions from governments and officials around the world. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said that Lebanon needs to stay away from any possible regional spillover from the conflict. "It is increasingly important for us to adhere strictly to the supreme national interest, which is the need to avoid Lebanon being ... drawn into the ongoing regional confrontation in any way,' Salam said in a post on X. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was "gravely alarmed' by the use of force by the United States. "There is a growing risk that this conflict could rapidly get out of control - with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region, and the world,' he said in a statement on the social media platform X. "I call on Member States to de-escalate.' "There is no military solution. The only path forward is diplomacy.' New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters urged "all parties to return to talks.' He wouldn't tell reporters Sunday whether New Zealand supported President Trump's actions, saying they had only just happened. The three-time foreign minister said the crisis is "the most serious I've ever dealt with" and that it was "critical further escalation is avoided.' "Diplomacy will deliver a more enduring resolution than further military action,' he said. Both the Houthi rebels in Yemen and Hamas have condemned the U.S. strikes. The Houthis vowed to support Iran in its fight against "the Zionist and American aggression.' In a statement on Sunday, the Houthi political bureau called on Muslim nations to join "the Jihad and resistance option as one front against the Zionist-American arrogance.' Hamas and the Houthis are part of Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance,' the collection of pro-Iranian proxies stretching from Yemen to Lebanon that for years gave Iran considerable power across the region. A flash commentary from China's government-run media asked whether the U.S. is "repeating its Iraq mistake in Iran.' The online piece by CGTN, the foreign-language arm of the state broadcaster, said the U.S. strikes mark a dangerous turning point. "History has repeatedly shown that military interventions in the Middle East often produce unintended consequences, including prolonged conflicts and regional destabilization,' it said, citing the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. It said a measured, diplomatic approach that prioritizes dialogue over military confrontation offers the best hope for stability in the Middle East. South Korea's presidential office held an emergency meeting on Sunday to discuss the potential security and economic ramifications of the U.S. strikes. National security director, Wi Sung-lac, asked officials to coordinate closely to minimize any negative impacts on South Korea, emphasizing that the top priority is ensuring the safety of the South Korean people and the continuation of their stable daily lives, according to the presidential office. Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba was expected to hold a meeting with key ministers Sunday afternoon to discuss the impact of the U.S. strikes, according to Japan's NHK television. Japan's largest-circulation newspaper Yomiuri is distributing an extra edition on the attack in Tokyo. Australia, which shuttered its embassy in Tehran and evacuated staff Friday, pushed for a diplomatic end to the conflict. "We have been clear that Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program has been a threat to international peace and security,' a government official said in a written statement. "We note the U.S. President's statement that now is the time for peace.' "The security situation in the region is highly volatile. We continue to call for de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy.'
Arab Times
4 hours ago
- Arab Times
U.S. Enters Iran-Israel Conflict With Devastating Strikes On Nuclear Sites
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The United States struck three sites in Iran early Sunday, inserting itself into Israel 's war aimed at destroying the country's nuclear program in a risky gambit to weaken a longtime foe despite fears of a wider regional conflict. Addressing the nation from the White House, President Donald Trump asserted that Iran's key nuclear were 'completely and fully obliterated.' There was no independent damage assessment. It was not clear whether the U.S. would continue attacking Iran alongside its ally Israel, which has been engaged in a nine-day war with Iran. Trump acted without congressional authorization, and he warned that there would be additional strikes if Tehran retaliated against U.S. forces. 'There will either be peace or there will be tragedy for Iran,' he said. The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran confirmed that attacks took place on its Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz sites, but it insisted that its work will not be stopped. Iran said there were no signs of radioactive contamination at the three locations and no danger to nearby residents. Iran has maintained that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, and U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that Tehran is not actively pursuing a bomb. However, Trump and Israeli leaders have claimed that Iran could quickly assemble a nuclear weapon, making it an imminent threat. The decision to directly involve the U.S. in the war comes after more than a week of strikes by Israel on Iran that aimed to systematically eradicate the country's air defenses and offensive missile capabilities, while damaging its nuclear enrichment facilities. But U.S. and Israeli officials have said American stealth bombers and the 30,000-pound (13,500-kilogram) bunker-buster bomb they alone can carry offered the best chance of destroying heavily fortified sites connected to the Iranian nuclear program buried deep underground. 'We have completed our very successful attack on the three Nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,' Trump said in a post on social media. 'All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home.' Trump added in a later post: 'This is an HISTORIC MOMENT FOR THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ISRAEL, AND THE WORLD. IRAN MUST NOW AGREE TO END THIS WAR. THANK YOU!' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Trump's decision to attack in a video message directed at the American president. 'Your bold decision to target Iran's nuclear facilities, with the awesome and righteous might of the United States, will change history,' he said. Netanyahu said the U.S. 'has done what no other country on earth could do.' Israel announced Sunday that it would close the country's airspace to both inbound and outbound flights in the wake of the U.S. attacks. The White House and Pentagon did not immediately elaborate on the operation. U.S. military leaders are scheduled to provide a briefing at 8 a.m. Eastern. The attack used bunker-buster bombs on Iran's Fordo nuclear fuel enrichment plant that is built deep into a mountain, a U.S. official said. The weapons are designed to penetrate the ground before exploding. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations. In addition, U.S. submarines launched about 30 Tomahawk missiles, according to another U.S. official who also spoke on condition of anonymity. The strikes are a perilous decision, as Iran has pledged to retaliate if the U.S. joined the Israeli assault, and for Trump personally. He won the White House on the promise of keeping America out of costly foreign conflicts and scoffed at the value of American interventionism. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was 'gravely alarmed' by the 'dangerous escalation' of American strikes. 'There is a growing risk that this conflict could rapidly get out of control — with catastrophic consequences for civilians, the region, and the world,' he said in a statement. Trump told reporters Friday that he was not interested in sending ground forces into Iran, saying it's 'the last thing you want to do.' He had previously indicated that he would make a final choice over the course of two weeks. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned the United States on Wednesday that strikes targeting the Islamic Republic will 'result in irreparable damage for them.' And Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei declared 'any American intervention would be a recipe for an all-out war in the region.' Trump has vowed that he would not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, and he had initially hoped that the threat of force would bring the country's leaders to give up its nuclear program peacefully. The Israeli military said Saturday it was preparing for the possibility of a lengthy war, while Iran's foreign minister warned before the U.S. attack that American military involvement 'would be very, very dangerous for everyone.' The prospect of a wider war loomed. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said they would resume attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea if the Trump administration joined Israel's military campaign. The Houthis paused such attacks in May under a deal with the U.S. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday that Trump planned to make his decision on the strikes within two weeks. Instead, he struck just two days later. Trump appears to have made the calculation — at the prodding of Israeli officials and many Republican lawmakers — that Israel's operation had softened the ground and presented a perhaps unparalleled opportunity to set back Iran's nuclear program, perhaps permanently. The Israelis say their offensive has already crippled Iran's air defenses, allowing them to significantly degrade multiple Iranian nuclear sites. But to destroy the Fordo nuclear fuel enrichment plant, Israel appealed to Trump for the bunker-busting American bomb known as the GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, which uses its weight and sheer kinetic force to reach deeply buried targets and then explode. The bomb is currently delivered only by the B-2 stealth bomber, which is only found in the American arsenal. It was the first combat use of the weapon. The bomb carries a conventional warhead, and is believed to be able to penetrate about 200 feet (61 meters) below the surface before exploding, and the bombs can be dropped one after another, effectively drilling deeper and deeper with each successive blast. The International Atomic Energy Agency has confirmed that Iran is producing highly enriched uranium at Fordo, raising the possibility that nuclear material could be released into the area if the GBU-57 A/B were used to hit the facility. Previous Israeli strikes at another Iranian nuclear site, Natanz, on a centrifuge site have caused contamination only at the site itself, not the surrounding area, the IAEA has said. Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 865 people and wounded 3,396 others, according to the Washington-based group Human Rights Activists. The group said of those dead, it identified 363 civilians and 215 security force personnel. Trump's decision for direct U.S. military intervention comes after his administration made an unsuccessful two-month push — including with high-level, direct negotiations with the Iranians — aimed at persuading Tehran to curb its nuclear program. For months, Trump said he was dedicated to a diplomatic push to persuade Iran to give up its nuclear ambitions. And he twice — in April and again in late May — persuaded Netanyahu to hold off on military action against Iran and give diplomacy more time. All the while, Trump has gone from publicly expressing hope that the moment could be a 'second chance' for Iran to make a deal to delivering explicit threats on Khamenei and making calls for Tehran's unconditional surrender. The military showdown with Iran comes seven years after Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Obama-administration brokered agreement in 2018, calling it the 'worst deal ever.' The 2015 deal, signed by Iran, U.S. and other world powers, created a long-term, comprehensive nuclear agreement that limited Tehran's enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Trump decried the Obama-era deal for giving Iran too much in return for too little, because the agreement did not cover Iran's non-nuclear malign behavior. Trump has bristled at criticism from some of his MAGA faithful who have suggested that further U.S. involvement would be a betrayal to supporters who were drawn to his promise to end U.S. involvement in expensive and endless wars. ___ Madhani reported from Morristown, N.J. Rising reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi in Iran; Mehmet Guzel in Istanbul; Josef Federman in Jerusalem; Samy Magdy in Cairo; Matthew Lee and Josh Boak in Washington; and Farnoush Amiri and Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
Kuwait Times
5 hours ago
- Kuwait Times
Pro-Palestinian activist released from US custody
NEW YORK: Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate who was one of the most visible leaders of nationwide pro-Palestinian campus protests, was released Friday from a federal detention center. Khalil, a legal permanent resident in the United States who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born son, has been in custody since March facing potential deportation. 'This shouldn't have taken three months,' Khalil, wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh scarf, told US media outside an immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana hours after a federal judge ordered his release. '(President Donald) Trump and his administration, they chose the wrong person for this,' he said. 'There's no right person who should be detained for actually protesting a genocide.' The Department of Homeland Security criticized District Judge Michael Farbiarz's ruling Friday as an example of how 'out of control members of the judicial branch are undermining our national security'. Under the terms of his release, Khalil will not be allowed to leave the United States except for 'self-deportation', and faces restrictions on where he can travel within the country. Khalil, raising his right fist as he approached journalists outside the detention center, condemned what he called the Trump administration's racist immigration policies. He said he was leaving behind hundreds of men housed at the detention center who should not be there. 'The Trump administration are doing their best to dehumanize everyone here,' he said outside the gates of the facility. 'No one is illegal, no human is illegal.' Khalil said that his time in detention had changed him. 'Once you enter there, you see a different reality,' he said. 'A different reality about this country that supposedly champions human rights and liberty and justice.' Khalil's wife, Michigan-born dentist Dr Noor Abdalla, said her family could now 'finally breathe a sigh of relief and know that Maumoud is on his way home'. 'We know this ruling does not begin to address the injustices the Trump administration has brought upon our family and so many others the government is trying to silence for speaking out against (the Zionist entity's) ongoing genocide against Palestinians,' added Abdalla, who gave birth to the couple's first child while her husband was in detention. Since his March 8 arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, Khalil has become a symbol of Trump's campaign to stifle pro-Palestinian student activism against the Gaza war, in the name of curbing 'anti-Semitism'. At the time a graduate student at Columbia University in New York, Khalil was a prominent leader of nationwide campus protests against the Zionist entity's war in Gaza. Following his arrest, US authorities transferred Khalil, who was born in Syria to Palestinian parents, nearly 2,000 km from his home in New York to the detention center in Louisiana, pending deportation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has invoked a law approved during the 1950s Red Scare that allows the United States to remove foreigners seen as adverse to US foreign policy. Rubio argues that US constitutional protections of free speech do not apply to foreigners and that he alone can make decisions without judicial review. Hundreds of students have seen their visas revoked, with some saying they were targeted for everything from writing opinion articles to minor arrest records. Farbiarz ruled last week that the government could not detain or deport Khalil based on Rubio's assertions that his presence on US soil poses a national security threat. The government has also alleged as grounds to detain and deport Khalil that there were inaccuracies in his application for permanent residency. Amol Sinha, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, which is among the groups representing Khalil, welcomed the release order. 'This is an important step in vindicating Mr Khalil's rights as he continues to be unlawfully targeted by the federal government for his advocacy in support of Palestinian rights,' Sinha said. – Agencies
