“We estimate that there are about 3,500 demonstrators, but more and more people are coming,” a police spokeswoman told AFP.
At the beginning of the rally, the atmosphere was calm, many of the protesters came with their families and children.
According to AFP journalists, the marchers’ placards read “Save Gaza”, “Stop the Genocide” and “Ceasefire”.
The marchers gathered at the famous Alexanderplatz in the center of Berlin. Many of them held Palestinian flags.
The demonstration was organized by several pro-Palestinian associations.
The organizers said that they expect approximately 2,000 people. participants, but police estimated there could be at least 10,000 and deployed around 1,400 officers to monitor the march, which is expected to end around 6 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time (20:00 Lithuanian time).
Israeli forces have surrounded the Gaza Strip’s largest city in a bid to crush Hamas and avenge raids on Israel on Oct. 7 that officials said killed about 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapped another 240.
The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry says more than 9,200 Gazans, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israeli strikes and an intensifying ground campaign.
Hamas is the Palestinian militant group that rules the Gaza Strip; it has been involved in several wars with Israel since taking over the Gaza Strip in 2007. The group has been recognized as a terrorist by Israel, the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and some other countries.
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2024-10-05 00:14:23
