Protesters gathered in downtown Dallas Saturday afternoon to raise awareness and take a stance against what they call the ongoing genocide in Gaza, where thousands have been killed, wounded or displaced from the continued warfare.
Iqbal Hasan, one of the organizers of the protest, described the attacks on Gaza as “blatant cruelty” and said it “needs to be stopped right now.”
Several hundred people gathered in front of City Hall by about 2:20 p.m. Participants waved Palestinian and American flags and held banners with phrases like “Our Tax $$$ Funds Genocide” and “Israel Starving Gaza’s Children.”
Ashton Zahner, 22, said they traveled via DART train from Flower Mound to downtown Dallas, a journey of about an hour and a half, to show support for Gaza.
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“I have such a privileged life compared to Gaza, and it’s only fair if I at least do this for them,” Zahner said.
Zahner said they have been frustrated by the bombings in Gaza, which the Gaza Health Ministry said have killed tens of thousands of women and children, in addition to the reports of food shortages in the besieged enclave.
“Some of these kids are already growing grey hair,” Zahner said. “We have a modern world where we have good medicine, we have more than enough food to feed the whole world.”
The crowd size grew as the rally continued. Speakers at the start of the protest compared the situation in Palestine to that of apartheid South Africa. People banged on drums and led chants of “Free Palestine.”
The “Save Gaza Mega March” on Saturday comes just days before the anniversary of an attack two years ago that triggered the Israel-Hamas war.
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On Oct. 7, 2023, thousands of Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel, attacking army bases, farming communities and an outdoor music festival, killing some 1,200 people, which were mostly civilians. They abducted 251 others, most of them since released in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 66,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or combatants. It says women and children make up around half of the dead.
The offensive has displaced around 90% of Gaza’s population, often multiple times, and left much of the territory uninhabitable, according to reports from The Associated Press.
It’s a “crisis,” Hasan said. He also said women, children and the elderly are all being impacted by what’s currently happening in Gaza. Lots of people are being killed, he said, and we want to put a stop to it.
Strikes on Gaza despite U.S. demands
Dozens were killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza on Saturday, local health officials said, despite a demand from President Donald Trump for Israel to stop bombing in response to a declaration by Hamas that it was ready to free hostages under his plan to end the two-year-old war.
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At least 36 people were killed in bombardments and airstrikes in the devastated Palestinian enclave since Trump demanded Israel halt its attacks late on Friday.
Israel said it had targeted a Hamas militant who had posed a threat to its troops in the area, and that reports of casualties were under review.
“The IDF regrets any harm caused to uninvolved civilians and works to mitigate harm to uninvolved civilians as much as possible,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
On Saturday, Trump said he appreciated that Israel had “temporarily stopped the bombing,” and he urged Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that controls Gaza, to move quickly on his plan, “or else all bets will be off.”
“I will not tolerate delay, which many think will happen, or any outcome where Gaza poses a threat again. Let’s get this done, FAST. Everyone will be treated fairly!” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
Hamas had drawn a welcoming response from Trump on Friday by saying it accepted certain key parts of his 20-point peace proposal, including ending the war, Israel’s withdrawal, and the release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian captives.
But the group has left some questions unanswered, such as whether it would be willing to disarm, a key demand from Israel to end the war.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.