From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Pro-Palestinians rally in Paris
Leftist and pro-Palestinian activists rally in Paris to urge Israel to end its airstrikes in Gaza, after talks toward a lasting truce collapse after Hamas renewed rocket fire at southern Israel.
About 300 protesters gather Wednesday near Napoleon’s tomb in central Paris, waving Palestinian flags, photos of people killed in airstrikes. Some banners read “No to the massacre in Gaza.”
Police watch carefully and the protest winds down peacefully, unlike several demonstrations last month in France that unleashed the worst tensions between France’s Muslim and Jewish communities in years. France has more Muslim and Jewish citizens than any other country in western Europe.
France’s government has urged a truce. It called on the Israeli military to use restraint and expressed concern about Palestinian civilian casualties, but says Israel has a right to its security.
— AP
