Tens of thousands of people walk in Barcelona to protest against the aid blockade of Israel in Gaza – National
Tens of thousands of people walk in Barcelona while Spain, Italy and Portugal are preparing for mass demonstrations to protest against the blockade of Israel in Gaza.
The demonstrations in the second largest city in Spain as well as in Madrid were called weeks ago, while calls for demonstrations in Rome and Lisbon followed great anger after the Israeli interception of a humanitarian aid fleet which had the navigation of Barcelona, trying to break the blocking of the Palestinian territory.
More than 40 Spaniards, including a former mayor of Barcelona, are among the 450 activists that Israel has withdrawn the boats from the flotilla this week.
Italy has already seen more than 2 million people gather on Friday across the country in a general strike by a day to support the residents of Gaza.
Spain has seen an increase in support for the Palestinians in recent weeks while its left -wing government intensifies diplomatic efforts against the far -right government of Benjamin Netanyahu. The demonstrations against the presence of an Israelis cycling team have repeatedly disrupted Spaniard Vuelta last month, while the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez qualified the destruction of Gaza as “genocide” and asked for the ban on all the Israeli teams of international sporting events.
Calls for demonstrations in southern Europe occur when Hamas has said that he has accepted certain elements of the plan set out by US President Donald Trump to end the two -year conflict, who left the largest city in Gaza in famine and aroused accusations of genocide against Israel.
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The town hall of Barcelona said that the police estimated that 70,000 people turned out to have the demonstration on Saturday.
People have wrapped up the Gracia de Barcelona passage, the main central boulevard of the city. Many families have been revealed, as well as people of all ages. The demonstrators wore Palestinian flags or wore t-shirts supporting Palestine. The portable panels wore messages like “Gaza hurts me”, “Stop the Genocide” and “Hands Off the Flatilla”.
Although the demonstrations will probably not influence the government of Israel, the demonstrators hope that they could inspire other demonstrations and encourage European leaders to adopt a more difficult line against Israel.
María Jesús Parra, 63, wore a high Palestinian flag after making a one hour trip from her house to another city in Barcelona. She wants the European Union to act against what she described as the horrors she watches daily televised.
“How is it possible that we are witnessing a genocide that occurs live after what we (as Europe) lived in the 1940s?” Said Parra. “Now no one can say that they didn’t know what was going on.”
An event in Rome is also underway, organized by three Palestinian organizations as well as unions and local students. The demonstrators will walk from Porta San Paolo and end in San Giovanni. Police expect tens of thousands of people attending it, reported Rai state broadcaster.
The demonstrations in Madrid and Lisbon will follow Saturday later. There are also demonstrations called in many other Spanish cities.
A demonstration is also staged in Athens on Saturday afternoon, although the police think that bigger will take place on Sunday, to coincide with a more pro-Israeli.
The most recent conflict in Gaza began after Hamas’ attack in October 2023, which left around 1,200 dead, while 251 others were taken hostage. The military reprisal offensive of Israel in Gaza has so far killed more than 67,000 people and injured nearly 170,000 others, many of whom are children, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
The ministry is part of the government managed by Hamas. UN agencies and many independent experts consider its figures as the most reliable estimate of victims in wartime.
& Copy 2025 the Canadian press
