2023-10-18 15:57:10
Thousands of people demonstrated across the Arab world on Wednesday, expressing their outrage at the death of several hundred people during a strike once morest a hospital in Gaza, blamed on Israel by the authorities of the Palestinian territory.
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Large rallies took place in Amman, Tunis, Beirut, Damascus and other capitals in the followingmath of the tragedy which left at least 471 people dead, according to the Ministry of Health in the besieged Gaza Strip, and sparked calls for a “day of anger” in the Arab world.
Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement which controls the territory, accused Israel of being behind the strike. The Israeli army rejected these accusations and blamed the attack on a failed rocket attack by Islamic Jihad, an ally of Hamas and which described the accusations as “lies”.
Jordan
On Wednesday, in front of the Israeli embassy in Amman, around 5,000 Jordanians gathered to demand the expulsion of the Israeli diplomatic mission following the attack.
Security forces blocked roads leading to the embassy, but the demonstration appeared to be growing in the face of street anger in Jordan, a country that hosts large numbers of Palestinian refugees.
“No Zionist embassy on Jordanian territory,” chanted the demonstrators, brandishing Palestinian flags.
Tunisia
In Tunisia, thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered outside the French embassy, condemning Western support for Israel.
Another demonstration was to take place in front of the US embassy in Tunis at 1 p.m. (1200 GMT), with rallies also expected in provincial towns, organizers said.
Lebanon
In Lebanon, hundreds of people took part in a demonstration called by Hezbollah in its stronghold in the southern suburbs of Beirut, brandishing Palestinian and Shiite party flags.
“What is happening in Gaza is not a conflict or a war (…) serial massacres are being committed,” declared a senior member of the movement, Hachem Safieddine.
“The Israelis will try to target more hospitals, paramedics, rescuers and residents of Gaza without batting an eyelid in order to expel” the residents, he added, before warning Israel once morest such “ project”.
Syria
In Damascus, the Syrian capital, hundreds of people waving Palestinian flags gathered near Parliament, many wearing T-shirts bearing the image of President Bashar al-Assad.
Thousands of Egyptians also took to the streets on Wednesday in different cities across the country, where protesting is usually illegal, according to images broadcast by local media and on social networks.
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