Pro-Palestinian protests on 2-year anniversary of Hamas' attack on Israel

Protesters gathered in several countries on Tuesday to condemn the war in Gaza as Israelis marked the second anniversary of the Hamas attack that sparked the fighting that has claimed tens of thousands of lives and spilt violence across the Middle EastMore than 1000 proPalestinian protesters marched to the US Embassy in Indonesias capital of Jakarta to denounce Israels blockade of Gaza and the detention of activists from the Global Sumud Flotilla that tried to break through last weekChanting Free free Palestine and waving flags demonstrators called for the activists release and condemned two years of Israeli military action in GazaAuthorities in Indonesia the worlds most populous Muslim majority nation and one that has no formal ties with Israel deployed over 1000 police to secure the embassyHamasled militants killed some 1200 people and kidnapped 251 people in the Oct 7 2023 attack during a major Jewish holiday Most hostages have been released in ceasefires or other dealsIsraels retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 67000 people destroyed vast areas of the strip displaced around 90 per cent of the population of some 2 million and caused a humanitarian crisis with experts saying Gaza City is experiencing famineThe conflict has sent ripples across the region bringing Israel into combat with Lebanons Hezbollah group Yemens Houthis rebels and militant groups in Iraq and Syria along with their patron Iran which suffered major losses in a 12day war with Israel in JuneIn Japan hundreds of protesters including Palestinians marched through downtown Tokyo demanding a ceasefire in Gaza and the hostages release Similar protests were held in Osaka and other major citiesLena Grace Suda a 30yearold Tokyo resident who joined the rally called for sanctions against IsraelRecognising the state of Palestine is not enough if youre still complicit in the genocide she said A growing number of experts including those commissioned by a UN body have said Israels offensive in Gaza amounts to genocide an accusation Israel vehemently deniesA proPalestinian candlelight vigil was held in TaiwanBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer criticised proPalestinian protests planned at universities across the country on the anniversary calling them unBritishWriting in The Times newspaper Starmer warned that such demonstrations risk fueling hate speech and antisemitismThis is not who we are as a country Its unBritish to have so little respect for others he said And thats before some of them decide to start chanting hatred toward Jewish people all over againStarmers intervention comes at a tense moment for Britain days after a naturalised citizen of Syrian origin attacked the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in Manchester Two men were killed and three others were seriously injuredAfter the assault British authorities have stepped up security around synagogues and criticised the rise of antisemitism The government is considering giving police new powers to restrict repeated protests deemed to have a negative cumulative impact on the communityLater on Tuesday in Istanbul where public support for Palestinians runs deep the iconic Galata Tower will be illuminated with the colours of the Palestinian flag to draw attention to the humanitarian situation in Gaza Turkiyes Tourism and Culture Ministry saidA protest was scheduled to take place near the Israeli Consulate in IstanbulTurkish authorities meanwhile cancelled a concert in Istanbul by British artist Robbie Williams that was scheduled for Tuesday evening over security concernsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever