By M Ghazali Khan
LONDON — At least 60,000 protesters from amazingly multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-ethnic backgrounds rallied Saturday in front of Israeli Embassy and from where they marched to the British Parliament to demand lifting of siege of Gaza and freedom for Palestine. “You don’t have to be a Muslim to stand for Palestinians. Just be a human” read a placard raised by a marcher.
As the march reached near Downing Street, protesters pointed fingers towards Prime Minister’s residence and shouted, “David Cameron you are a coward”; “David Cameron you will see Palestine will be free”.
Slogans being chanted by the marchers included, “Killing children is a crime, free free Palestine”; “In a thousand in a million, we are all Palestinians”; “In a million, in a billion we are all Palestinians”; “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”; “One to three four, occupation no more, five six seven eight Israel is a terrorist state”; “Shame on Cameroon, shame on Nitin Yahoo”; “Gaza, Gaza don’t you cry we will not let you die”; “Bit by bit, one by one, Israeli apartheid has to go”.
They held placards with messages, “When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty”; “Stop bombing Palestine”; “Stop the massacre”; “BBC stop whitewashing Israel’s crimes”
At parliament square the rally was addressed by Labor MPs Diane Abbott and Jeremy Corbyn, musicians Brian Eno and Dave Randall, the poet and broadcaster Michael Rosen and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament’s Bruce Kent. They condemned Israeli barbarism and demanded lifting of siege of Gaza and freedom for Palestine.
In a series of protests against Israeli barbarism this was the third march in London within two weeks organised by Stop the War Coalition, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Friends of Al Aqsa, British Muslim Initiative, Muslim Association of Britain and Palestinian Forum in Britain.
Last week at least 100,000 gathered in London to demand end of bombing on Gaza and freedom for Palestine. Similar rallies have simultaneously been organised in 19 other cities of UK including Birmingham, Bradford, Cambridge, Cardiff, Doncaster, Edinburgh, Hastings, Hebden Bridge, Lancaster, Leicester, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Oxford, Peterborough, Preston, Salisbury, Sheffield, Southampton and Stroud.
M Ghazali Khan is a London-based journalist
