Thousands gathered outside Downing Street on Monday evening to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and protest against the British government’s complicity in Israel’s attacks.
Overnight, Israel carpet-bombed Gaza's Rafah, where 1.4 million are crammed into refugee camps in an area the size of Heathrow Airport.
At least 74 people were killed in heavy air strikes even through Israel previously declared it a “safe zone.” There are fears that Israel will soon launch a ground invasion.
Over 2,000 protesters gathered outside No 10 with just a few hours’ notice, closing down roads surrounding Whitehall.
A spokesperson for one of the organisers, Stop the War, said that protesters “kept on arriving even after the speeches were over.
“The loud and clear message to Rishi Sunak hiding in No 10 was he is complicit in genocide, in the slaughter of children,” they said.
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament general secretary Kate Hudson said the impromptu protest “shows so clearly the strength of public feeling against the onslaught on Rafah and Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
“Now home to the highest density of refugees in the world, a ground invasion of Rafah will have the most dire consequences for civilians sheltering there.”
Protests continued today as demonstrators rallied outside Google’s headquarters in London under the campaign No Tech for Apartheid.
Google and Amazon have a $1.22 billion contract to provide cloud technology to the Israeli government and military which protesters say make it easier to surveil Palestinians and force them off their land.
A ninth national march will take place on Saturday in London as part of a Global Day of Action.
Ben Jamal, director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign which is one of the rally organisers, said: “We need to play our part to stop the genocide in Gaza, ensure an immediate ceasefire and help provide the humanitarian aid that is so desperately needed.
“The people of Britain have shown for months they have a moral compass and are on the side of justice and humanity.
“It’s time our political leaders did the same.”
“We demand the UK government takes seriously its duties under the Genocide Convention and suspends arms sales as the first step to averting further genocidal acts by Israel.”
The Palestinian death toll has now surpassed 28,000 since October.
