Anger and protests in several European countries after international flotilla with Gaza aid was intercepted by Israel

Hundreds of thousands of people participated on Saturday in pro-Palestinian meetings in Europe, demanding the immediate termination of the war in Gaza and the release of activists on board a fleet carrying humanitarian aid in the enclave, which the Israeli army intercepted, reports AFP and France 24.

Hundreds of thousands of people have marched through the center of Rome, on the fourth consecutive day of protests in Italy, since Israel has intercepted an international fleet trying to deliver aid in Gaza and retained its activists, reports Reuters.

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Hundreds of thousands of people marched to Rome

People, wearing banners and flags and chanting the “free Palestine” and other slogans, paraded by Colosseum, participating in a march that, according to the organizers, attracted over 1 million people, while the police estimated the number of participants in about 250,000, writes News.ro.

“I am here with many other friends, because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” said Francesco Galtieri, a 65 -year -old musician in Rome.

“If we all not mobilize, then nothing will change,” he said.

The protest, held under a bright sun, was peaceful, participating in students, children and the elderly. Also, at least one banner who greet the Hamas attack on October 7 on Israel and anti-Israeli scandals were displayed.

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Clashes with the police

At the end of the march, about 200 people separated and collided with the officers in anti-revolt equipment near the basilica of Saint Maria Mare, the police said. The officers responded with tear gas and a cannon of water.

The protesters threw Molotov cocktails and set a police car, AGI reported.

Ever since Israel began to block the fleet on Wednesday night, protests have erupted throughout Europe and other parts of the world, but in Italy they have taken place in several cities.

On Friday, the unions convened a general strike in support of the fleet, with demonstrations throughout the country that attracted over 2 million people, the organizers said.

The Ministry of Interior estimated the participation in about 400,000 people. The right -wing government criticized the protests.

Pro-Palestine protests in Spain

About 70,000 people went out in Barcelona, ​​according to the police, while the Madrid government said almost 92,000 people marched in the capital of Spain.

Several thousand people marched through the center of the Irish capital, Dublin, to mark what the organizers called “two years of genocide” in Gaza.

Along with Ireland, Spain is one of the most fervent European critics of the Israeli military offensive in Gaza, triggered by the Hamas militants attack on October 7, 2023 on the Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip.

The Meloni government, criticized for the lack of reaction

In Italy, however, the far-right government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was criticized for the lack of reaction to the siege of the Palestinian territory.

On Saturday, Meloni accused the demonstrators of vandalizing a statue of Pope John II with graffiti in front of the main station in Rome, qualifying this gesture as “a shameful act”.

Flotila Sumud, which was intercepted on Wednesday, left Barcelona in early September and tried to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza, where, according to the United Nations, hunger broke out.

The organizers claim that the actions of Israel were “illegal”, as the ships were intercepted while they were in international waters.

In Paris, where about 10,000 people gathered, Helene Coron, the spokesman of the French contingent of Sumud, told the crowd: “We will never stop. This fleet has not reached Gaza. But we will send another, then one, until Palestina and Gaza are free.”

In London, the police said he made at least 442 arrests in a meeting in support of the pro-Palestinian forbidden group. British prime minister Keir Starmer urged the protesters to stay home this weekend, after the deadly attack on a synagogue.