BARCELONA, Spain — Thousands of people are marching in Barcelona as Spain, Italy and Portugal gear up for mass demonstrations to protest Israel’s war in Gaza.

Protests in Spain’s second-largest city as well as in Madrid were called for weeks ago, while calls for demonstrations in Rome and Lisbon followed widespread anger after the Israeli interception of a humanitarian aid flotilla that had set sail from Barcelona, trying to break the blockade of the Palestinian territory.

Italy already saw more than 2 million people rally on Friday across the country in a one-day general strike to support the residents of Gaza.

Barcelona’s taxis take part in a demonstration in solidarity with Palestinians on Saturday. AFP via Getty Images

Protesters gathered after the Israeli interception of a humanitarian aid flotilla trying to break the blockade of the Palestinian territory. AFP via Getty Images

Demonstrators protested in front of an Israeli embassy in Lisbon, Portugal, on Thursday. REUTERS

Spain has seen an upsurge of support for Palestinians in recent weeks while its left-wing government intensifies diplomatic efforts against the far-right government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Protests against the presence of an Israeli-owned cycling team repeatedly disrupted the Spanish Vuelta last month, while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called the destruction in Gaza a “genocide” and asked for the ban of all Israeli teams from international sporting events.

The calls for protests in Southern Europe come as Hamas said it has accepted some elements of the plan laid out by U.S. President Donald Trump to end the two-year war, which has left Gaza’s largest city in famine and stirred accusations of genocide against Israel.

In Barcelona, many families turned out along with people of all ages.

Protesters carried Palestinian flags or wore t-shirts supporting Palestine.

Hand-held signs bore messages like “Gaza hurts me,” “Stop the Genocide,” and “Hands off the flotilla.”

Palestinian protesters demonstrate and occupy the highway with smoke bombs in solidarity with the Global Sumud Flotilla and Gaza in Livorno, Italy. Besides Spain, demonstrations have been held in Italy and Portugal. Getty Images

Pro-Palestinian protesters in Barcelona, Spain, on Saturday. REUTERS

Protester holds an “Israhell” sign in solidarity with Palestine. AFP via Getty Images

While the protests will likely not sway Israel’s government, protesters hope they could inspire other demonstrations and encourage European leaders to take a harder line against Israel.

María Jesús Parra, 63, carried a Palestinian flag high after making an hourlong trip from her home in another town to Barcelona. She wants the European Union to act against what she described as the horrors she watches on televised news on a daily basis.

“How is it possible that we are witnessing a genocide happening live after what we (as Europe) experienced in the 1940s?” Parra said. “Now nobody can say they didn’t know what was happening.”

The protests in Rome, Madrid and Lisbon are to follow later on Saturday. There are also protests called across many other Spanish cities.

Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate during a nationwide strike called by the USB union in Bologna, Italy, on Friday. REUTERS

A pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag inside the commercial port of Naples. REUTERS

Demonstrators stand in front of riot police during the nationwide general strike “Block Everything” against the genocide in Palestine and the complicity of the Meloni government, in Turin, Italy, on Friday. AP

The war in Gaza started after Hamas’ attack on Southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which left around 1,200 people dead, while 251 others were taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory military offensive in Gaza has so far killed over 67,000 people and wounded nearly 170,000 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government. U.N. agencies and many independent experts view its figures as the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.