‘March for Gaza’ Protest Attracts Thousands in DC

“March for Gaza” protesters, many waving red and green Palestinian flags, gathered by the thousands in Washington, D.C., Saturday to call for a cease-fire in Gaza and for the United States to quit providing aid to Israel, joining in a day of worldwide pro-Palestinian marches in cities including Rome, London, Paris, Dublin, Johannesburg, and Kuala Lumpur. 

The protests in D.C. centered in Freedom Plaza, just blocks from the White House, with busloads of demonstrators arriving from across the United States to protest the war and the American support for Israel’s bombing campaign that has been going on since Oct. 7, when Hamas fighters attacked in Israel, reports The Washington Post.

The rally was organized by several groups, including the American Muslim Task Force for Palestine, and marked the second largest pro-Palestinian march in the nation’s capital since the war began. 

The Post notes that police lined numerous near the protests, but not at the plaza itself. Snow plows were also parked on major routes in the city to block intersections while keeping marchers apart from traffic or to redirect them from areas in the city. 

The protests came a day after proceedings at the International Court of Justice by South Africa, which made claims that Israel is committing genocide with its attacks on Gaza. 

Israel maintained that the death toll was unavoidable given the circumstances of its battle with Hamas, as it is embedded in civilian areas in Gaza and wants a repeat of its Oct. 7 attacks. 

“Today, again, we saw an upside-down world, in which the State of Israel is accused of genocide at a time when it is fighting genocide,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said about the charges.

Several speakers addressed the D.C. rally, including Josh Paul, a former State Department official who resigned to protest the Biden administration’s support of Israel.

Paul called on President Joe Biden and his cabinet to call for an immediate cease-fire as well as for the release of hostages being held by Hamas and the Palestinians being held unjustly by Israel.

Mohamad Habehh the director of development for American Muslims for Palestine and the lead organizer of Saturday’s event, said picked the weekend to mark the almost 100 days of war and because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. 

“We feel that it is important for us to come on this holiday weekend in the spirit of MLK when he said that ‘injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,’ that we stand up against the injustice that’s going on in Gaza right now, and stand up against the atrocities that are being supported and being promoted by our government,” he commented.

Sandy Fitzgerald | editorial.fitzgerald@newsmax.com Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.