Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Australia on Saturday for a rally in support of Palestine with calls for an end to Israel’s attacks.
The rally took place in Australia’s largest city, Sydney, and saw an estimated 15,000 protesters marching with the Palestinian flag and demanding Israel stop bombing Gaza.
The air and artillery strikes by Israel in the last two weeks in the narrow strip have already killed 4,100 people.
Protestors chanted “Palestine will never die” and from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”.
Similar rallies were also held in other Australian cities, including Brisbane, Perth and Hobart.
“Today, we have come to tell the world that we stand on the right side of justice,” campaigner Assala Sayara told the protestors to loud cheers, according to The Guardian.
“We stand on the side of humanity.”
One protester, Barbara O’Neill, described Palestinians as “my brothers and sisters”, saying, “They have been suffering genocide publicly and in a very high-profile way,” according to the Associated Press.
Several other protestors said they attended the rally because people had a “right to know what’s going on with the Palestinians” and believed in the humanitarian cause.
“If they knew what the state of Israel has done and is continuing to do, they would support Palestine,” Rally-goer James McGlone told AP.
People demonstrate in support of Palestinians in Gaza as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues, in Sydney, Australia— (via REUTERS)
The assembly was given a last-minute green light after a previous rally against Israel’s actions ended up in a controversy, with some protestors chanting anti-Jewish slogans.
A significant police presence was seen at the venue and organisers said they worked closely with authorities to ensure the march went on in peace.
“Last week, the premier of NSW was saying that there would never be another Palestine march in this state,” protest organiser Fahad Ali said in a statement posted online.
“We fought against that and we won, so today we’re looking forward to a really successful, really wonderful event.”
However, the rally also received some pushback, with Alex Ryvchin, co-CEO of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, the top group for Australia’s Jewish community, said Saturday’s Sydney rally “incited more hatred in Australia” and fractured “fragile social cohesion”.
