Multitud protesta en Atocha por la situación en Gaza
Madrid, 15 Oct.
Atocha served as the backdrop for a demonstration on Sunday in support of the Palestinian people and against the "genocide" in Gaza by Israel, which brought together 9,000 people, according to police sources.
The march, under the slogan 'Madrid with Palestine. Demonstration against Israeli colonialism', began on Atocha Street and is expected to end at Puerta del Sol. It is called by various organizations linked to the Palestinian struggle and supported by several leftist parties.
This gathering is part of the escalation of violence in the area since Saturday 7 October, when Hamas carried out a terrorist attack in Israel. The country led by Benjamin Netanyahu has launched an offensive on the Gaza Strip.
'Israel, murderer of the Palestinian people', 'This is not a war, it is a genocide', and 'Long live the struggle of the Palestinian people' were some of the slogans heard this afternoon in Madrid.
"Israel has had a policy of humiliation and extermination," said Jesus Abderraman, one of the protesters gathered at the march, to Europa Press. He also criticized that when Palestinians "defend themselves they are called terrorists," while when it is Israel "they have the right to defend themselves."
Christian Rodriguez, another protester, expressed a similar sentiment, reproaching the "genocide that Israel is perpetrating" in response to a terrorist attack "by a group that does not represent the entire population." He insisted that it is "one the greatest injustices of recent years."
Among the attendees at the demonstration were Sumar MP Iñigo Errejón and the spokesperson for Más Madrid in the Assembly, Mónica García. Both have called for a ceasefire and demanded an end to the "genocide" against the Palestinians.
The daily report published this Sunday by the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip puts the death toll at 2,450 and the number of injured at 9,200 since the start of the retaliatory attacks by the Israeli Armed Forces.
Meanwhile, the Chief of the Israeli Air Force, General Tomer Bar, announced on Sunday that their aircraft are facilitating the conditions for a possible large-scale ground intervention by the Army in the Gaza Strip, the first of its kind since Operation Cast Lead in 2008.