Thousands join anti-Israel rallies across globe as anniversary of Oct. 7 massacres nears

LONDON, United Kingdom — Thousands of pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel protesters marched in London and other cities on Saturday calling for an end to Israel’s military operations against terror groups in Gaza and Lebanon, as the war between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah neared the one-year mark.

At the start of a planned wave of protests worldwide, pro-Palestinian supporters gathered in cities in the UK, US, France, South Africa, Ireland, and Switzerland to demand an end to the conflict and denounce Israel.

Dozens of protests and commemorations are set to take place ahead of the anniversary Monday of Palestinian terror group Hamas’s devastating October 7 cross-border attack on Israel which killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, triggering the ongoing war. The thousands of terrorists who burst into the south of the country from the Gaza Strip also abducted 251 people who were taken as hostages to the Palestinian coastal enclave.

Israel responded with a military offensive to destroy Hamas in Gaza and secure the release of the hostages.

The day after the Hamas assault, Lebanon’s Hezbollah began attacking along Israel’s northern border. Near-daily rocket and drone attacks were countered with Israeli airstrikes. Over the past two weeks, Israel massively intensified its campaign, eliminating most of Hezbollah’s leadership and destroying large amounts of the group’s weapons stockpiles.

Open support for proscribed terror org Hezbollah + uniforms that appear to mimic those of another Islamist group on ⁦@BenJamalpsc⁩ latest farce. Full report & identities revealed in ⁦@JewishNewsUK⁩ report later today (Pics mine).Will be contacting ⁦@metpoliceuk⁩ pic.twitter.com/GiBz8nOZvy

— lee harpin (@lmharpin) October 5, 2024

This week Israel began what it said was a limited ground operation in southern Lebanon aimed at destroying infrastructure built for attacks on northern Israel and pushing Hezbollah away from the border.

At the “National March for Palestine” in London, attended by tens of thousands, familiar chants — “Ceasefire now,” “Stop bombing hospitals, stop bombing civilians” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” — were joined by cries of “hands off Lebanon.”

In addition, among the banners displayed at the march were ones reading “Hezbollah are not terrorists” and “I love Hezbollah,” the UK’s Telegraph newspaper reported.

At least 15 people were arrested, including three on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker and one on suspicion of supporting a proscribed organization.

One man was apparently detained for dressing as a Hamas paraglider.

A pro-Palestinian arrested today in London for what looks like dressing like a Hamas paraglider. After the terrorists invaded Israel using this method they raped and murdered hundreds of kids at a rave. These people are sick. pic.twitter.com/jFktjIHLkv

— Heidi Bachram ????️ (@HeidiBachram) October 5, 2024

Supporters of Israel have questioned the intent of the mass rallies, which appear timed to mark the one-year mark of the Oct. 7 atrocities themselves, rather than the massive Israeli response in Gaza — which only started weeks later.

London’s Metropolitan Police had said Friday it would not allow shows of support for Hamas or Hezbollah, both of which the UK has proscribed as terror groups, according to the Telegraph.

Police said they were working to identify those who displayed support for banned organizations, the report said.

“These images have been passed to officers, including those monitoring our camera systems. We are urgently trying to identify those involved so that action can be taken,” police said.

The Campaign Against Antisemitism watchdog said in a statement reported by the Telegraph that over the past year, “those in power have allowed support for Hamas to run rampant on Britain’s streets week in, week out.”

“Now, it seems we are seeing the results of their inaction as anti-Israel protesters have apparently moved on to defending Hezbollah, a proscribed antisemitic genocidal terror group.”

It claimed that the Metropolitan Police “has enabled Jew-hatred and support for terrorists to be normalized on our streets.”

Some of the London march’s organizers had said they planned to target companies and institutions they claimed were “complicit in Israel’s crimes,” including Barclays Bank and the British Museum.

Police put in place a “significant” policing operation ahead of planned protests and memorial events.

The atmosphere was tense as pro-Palestine protesters and counter-demonstrators, some holding Israeli flags, passed each other. Scuffles broke out as police officers pushed back activists trying to get past a cordon.

Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in Britain, said he and others will keep organizing marches until action against Israel is taken.

“We need to be out on the streets in even bigger numbers to stop this carnage and stop Britain being drawn into it,” Jamal said.

In the US, around a thousand demonstrators protested outside the White House, including a man who attempted to set himself on fire.

He succeeded in lighting his left arm ablaze before bystanders and police rushed to his aid, dousing him with water and extinguishing the flames using their keffiyehs, traditional Palestinian scarves.

“I’m a journalist and we neglect it, we spread the misinformation,” he shouted, in between screams of pain as the fire on his arm was put out.

Police said the man was being treated for “non-life threatening injuries.”

In Cape Town in South Africa, hundreds walked to parliament, chanting: “Israel is a racist state” and “We are all Palestinian.”

Pro-Gaza marches were also planned on Saturday in Johannesburg and Durban.

In France, hundreds of people marched in Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, and Strasbourg to express solidarity with the Palestinians, AFP journalists saw.

Several thousand people came together in the Swiss city of Basel for an anti-Israel demonstration, with marchers calling for a ceasefire, economic sanctions on Israel, and an end to Swiss scientific collaboration with Israel, the Keystone-ATS news agency reported.

In Rome, several thousand demonstrators gathered in spite of a ban by local authorities who refused to authorize protests in the Italian capital, citing security concerns. Protesters chanted “Free Palestine, Free Lebanon,” waving Palestinian flags and holding banners calling for an immediate stop to the conflict.

Some protesters, dressed in black and with their faces covered, threw bottles and paper bombs at the police, who responded with tear gas and water cannons, eventually dispersing the crowd.

Italian authorities believed that the timing of Saturday’s rally in Rome risked the October 7 attack being “glorified,” local media reported.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi also stressed that ahead of the key anniversary, Europe is on high alert for potential terror attacks.

“This is not a normal situation… We are already in a condition of maximum prevention,” he said.

In the northern German city of Hamburg, about 950 people staged a peaceful demonstration with many waving Palestinian and Lebanese flags or chanting “Stop the genocide,” the DPA news agency reported, citing a count by police. Two smaller pro-Israeli counterdemonstrations took place without incident, it said.

Several thousand protesters gathered peacefully at Paris’s Republique Plaza in a show of solidarity with the Palestinian and Lebanese people and to condemn Israel. Many were waving Palestinian flags while holding posters reading ”Stop the genocide,” “Free Palestine,” and “Hands off Lebanon.”

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators also planned to join rallies in Washington, New York’s Times Square and several other cities in the United States as well as in other parts of the world, including Denmark and India. In the Philippines, dozens of left-wing activists protested near the US Embassy in Manila, where police prevented them from getting close to the seaside compound.

Other pro-Palestinian protests were planned over the weekend and on Monday in cities including Sydney, Buenos Aires, Madrid and Karachi.

High security alert

Security forces in several countries warned of heightened levels of alert in major cities, amid concerns that the escalating conflict in the Middle East could inspire new terror attacks in Europe or that the protests could turn violent.

Anti-Israel protests have repeatedly taken place across Europe and around the globe over the past year and have often turned violent, with confrontations between demonstrators and law enforcement.

In Berlin, a march was scheduled from the Brandenburg Gate to Bebelplatz on Sunday. Local media reported that security forces have warned of a potential overload because of the scale of protests. German authorities pointed to increasing antisemitic and violent incidents in recent days.

Earlier this week in France, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau warned the country’s regional prefects, expressing concern about possible tensions and saying that the terrorist threat was high.

Commemorations for October 7 victims

Commemorations for victims of the October 7 attack are also scheduled internationally, including ceremonies in London, Washington, Paris, Geneva, Athens and Berlin.

Several pro-Israeli demonstrations were expected to be held on Sunday.

An official anniversary ceremony will be held in Jerusalem on Monday.

President Isaac Herzog will lead a memorial service at Sderot, one of the cities hit hard during the onslaught by Palestinian terrorists.