Massive rallies for Gaza in Europe
Tens of thousands join pro-Palestinian protests in Netherlands, Belgium, France
THE HAGUE: Tens of thousands of people dressed in red marched through the streets of The Hague and in Brussels on Sunday to demand more action from their governments against the genocide in Gaza. In France on Saturday, thousands of other people joined similar protests, as part of a weekend mobilization around the world against the Zionist offensive in the Palestinian territory. Some 150,000 people participated in the march in the Hague, according to organizers.
In Brussels, where protesters were also calling for action from the EU, turnout was estimated at 110,000 by organizers and 75,000 by police. Rights groups such as Amnesty International and Oxfam organized the demonstrations, which were aimed at creating a so-called 'red line' on the issue. With many waving Palestinian flags and some chanting 'Stop the Genocide', the demonstrators in the Dutch city turned a central park into a sea of red on a sunny afternoon before a march towards the International Court of Justice. Protesters brandished banners reading 'Don't look away, do something', 'Stop Dutch complicity', and 'Be silent when kids sleep, not when they die'.
Organizers urged the Dutch government – which collapsed on June 3 after a far-right party pulled out of a fragile coalition – to do more to rein in the Zionist entity for its military offensive on the Palestinian territory. 'More than 150,000 people here dressed in red – and a clear majority of the Dutch population – just want concrete sanctions to stop the genocide in Gaza,' said Michiel Servaes, director of Oxfam Novib, a Dutch branch of the international aid group. 'We demand action now from our government,' added Servaes.
Dodo Van Der Sluis, a 67-year-old pensioner, told AFP: 'It has to stop. Enough is enough. I can't take it anymore.' Prime Minister Dick Schoof wrote on X, formerly Twitter: 'To all those people in The Hague I say: we see you and we hear you.' 'In the end, our goal is the same: to end the suffering in Gaza as soon as possible.'
In Brussels, many families were seen taking part, with the crowd yelling 'Free free Palestine!' and aiming invective at Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A large sign noted that Netanyahu was 'Wanted for Crimes Against Humanity', referring to an ICJ warrant out against him. In Paris on Sunday, meanwhile, a dozen protesters began a march to Brussels to demand EU sanctions on Zionist entity.
The group, which includes a French actress, Corinne Masiero, wants the European Union 'to hear the voice of civil society reminding it of its duties', said Nathalie Tehio, head of the NGO Human Rights League. The marchers want EU officials to meet with them on June 23, when a regular meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers is to be held. The Zionist offensive has killed at least 55,207 people in Gaza, the majority of them civilians. The International Court of Justice is currently weighing a case brought by South Africa against the Zionist entity, arguing its actions in Gaza breach the 1948 UN Genocide Convention.
On Saturday, thousands of demonstrators protested across France in support of Palestinians and calling for peace in Gaza. French trade unions, left-wing parties and pro-Palestinian activist groups called for a global weekend of protests against the Zionist entity's offensive in the territory. In Paris, where the largest march took place, police counted 9,000 demonstrators, while the CGT trade union and hard-left party France Unbowed (LFI) said 150,000 attended the gathering. European Parliament member Rima Hassan called on supporters to 'deviate, disobey and take all necessary actions to enforce international law, to put an end to genocide'.
She recently spent three days in a detention center in the Zionist entity after attempting to breach its blockade of Gaza on a boat with other activists. Protesters on Saturday criticized France's stance on the conflict, branding it conciliatory or even 'complicit' with the Zionist government. 'We don't want what is happening in Gaza to be silenced. Every day we hear that 30, 60 people have died. It has become routine, we don't see it anymore and I'm afraid that with what's happening with Iran, it will become even more invisible,' said one protester, Eve, 63, who declined to give her last name. Thousands of people also rallied in the cities of Marseille, Toulouse and Rennes. — AFP
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