Thousands across globe protest 74th anniversary of Israel’s illegal existence

Rallies and demonstrations were held on Saturday in cities across the United States, Australia and elsewhere in the world to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Nakba (Catastrophe) Day.

Nakba Day marks the 1948 forced expulsion of nearly 800,000 Palestinians from their homes in historical Palestine as Israel proclaimed its illegal existence.

Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrations were held in the US, Canada, Britain and Australia, to show solidarity with Palestinians and call for an end to Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Protests were held in many US cities, including New York, Boston, Washington, Montreal and Dearborn, Michigan.

About two thousand people turned out in the Bay Ridge area of Brooklyn in New York, chanting “Free, free Palestine” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

They waved Palestinian flags and held placards that read “End Israeli Apartheid” and “Freedom for Gaza.”

Many protesters wore black and white, and red and white, keffiyeh scarves, while drivers sounded car horns and motorcyclists revved their engines as the sun beat down.

Several Jewish people also attended the rally, carrying placards that read “Not in my name” and “Solidarity with Palestine” as the protesters took over a street in the area.

A few dozen police officers looked on at the peaceful protest, dubbed “Defend Palestine.”

“I'm here because I want a Palestinian life to equal an Israeli life and today it doesn't,” 35-year-old Emraan Khan, a corporate strategist from Manhattan said, as he waved a Palestinian flag.

“Palestinians have the right to live freely and children in Gaza should not be being killed,” Alison Zambrano, a 20-year-old student, said.

Mashhour Ahmad, a 73-year-old Palestinian who has lived in New York for 50 years, said, “I'm telling Mr. Biden and his cabinet to stop supporting the killing. Support the victims, stop the oppression.”

“The violence committed by the Israeli army recently is genocide," he added, raising a poster above his head that said “Free Palestine, End the occupation.”

Separately, throngs of people gathered in Copley Square in Boston, while hundreds rallied on the Washington Monument grounds in the US capital.

Similar pro-Palestine rallies were held in San Francisco and San Diego as well.

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