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A HUGE 200,000-strong march of workers, students and youth went from Parliament Square to Hyde Park on Saturday, the 13th National demonstration for Palestine in London since Israel’s Zionist genocidal war on Gaza began last October.
As the march was assembling outside Parliament, Fareeda Southworth, a London charity worker, told News Line: ‘We’re part of tens of thousands marching peacefully today to convey a message that the genocide Israel is committing on Palestinians must be stopped.
‘Britain must stop providing weapons and end this genocide. I’m sick and tired of explaining to people that anti-Zionism is nothing to do with antisemitism.’
Entesar Ariabi, a pharmacist from Iraq, said: ‘Britain is shameful for supporting genocide. But it’s nothing new. I’m from Iraq, where Britain has a long and bloody history, especially in recent years, creating the war in Libya, Iraq, Syria and Iran and supporting Zionism.
‘The whole world has seen Israel killing children, babies, women. What more evidence could they need of guilt of genocide? In my view there is no doubt that the machinery of imperialism, the arms manufacturers, must be stopped and closed down. They are making money out of the selling of their weapons to make war. We are here to bring down imperialism, to defend Palestine. Imperialism was behind the war in Iraq and now Palestine.’
Marco Torri, a young photographer from east London, said: ‘I’ve been documenting all the protests for Palestine since 2021 and at some point I hope my photographs could be published and I would like to do an exhibition.
‘It’s important to have a platform to show the people with images and art what’s going on in the street for protesting for Palestine. Israel is using October 7th to carry out ethnic cleansing and the demolition of all Palestinian buildings. They also mean to escalate with a bigger war against Iran. The working class should unionise, revolutionise and take control of society.’
Annie Newsome, President of the Roehampton University Palestine Society, said: ‘We set up the society in February. The student demonstrations in the USA are very powerful and inspiring, not to overlook that there have also been big demonstrations at all the universities in this country – at Goldsmiths, UCL and elsewhere. Students are rising up for Palestine all over the world.’
The march lined up down Whitehall with thousands of Palestinian flags behind the lead banners of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, the Palestinian Forum in Britain, the Stop the War Coalition, Friends of Al-Aqsa and the Muslim Association of Britain.
The Workers Revolutionary Party and Young Socialists banner demanded: ‘Charge Israel with War Crimes!’ and had a loud and lively contingent behind it, keeping up constant chants of: ‘From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free!’ and ‘Victory to – Palestine!’
While there were trade union banners from the UCU, Unison, GMB, NEU, Unite, RMT, ASLEF, PCS and other unions on the march, the TUC was absent and remains silent on Israel’s Genocide in Gaza.
The march set off and was soon met by 1,000 Jews demonstrating with their banners in the Jewish Bloc opposite Downing Street, cheering the front of the march as it passed and then joining it with their banners including: ‘Jews against Gaza Genocide, Jewish Voice for Labour, Na’Amod,’ and with their placards, including ‘Openly Jewish and against Gaza Genocide,’ ‘UK Jews against Occupation and Apartheid,’ ‘This Jew says Stop Arming Israel!’ and ‘This Jew says Free Palestine!’
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