Belgian officials have been criticizing Israel’s violence against the civilians in Gaza…reports Asian Lite News
Thousands of people rallied in Brussels in support of Palestine on Sunday, calling for a cease-fire in Gaza where Israeli attacks since the Oct. 7 Hamas incursion have killed more than 25,000 people.
Having gathered in front of the Brussels-North railway station, demonstrators walked to the Place Jean Rey Square.
Participants chanted “Justice for Palestine, now,” and signs reading “Save the children in Gaza,” “Ceasefire, right now!,” “Palestinians’ rights are human rights.”
They also carried flags of Palestine, and South Africa, which filed a genocide lawsuit against Israel at the International Court of Justice.
President of Socialist Party Paul Magnette was also among the demonstrators. He shared a video from the protest on X, and repeated call for an immediate truce in Gaza.
Belgian officials have been criticizing Israel’s violence against the civilians in Gaza.
Development Cooperation Minister Caroline Gennez said on Friday Belgium reaffirms full support for the ICJ, and if the world court calls on Israel to cease its military campaign in Gaza, “our country will fully support it.”
“Steps in right direction. Our country is taking its responsibility, for human rights & humanitarian law. Meanwhile, I remain committed at all levels to making full humanitarian access to Gaza a reality as soon as possible,” she said on X.
EU foreign ministers to meet Israeli, Palestinian counterparts
Meanwhile, EU foreign ministers will hold separate talks with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts over two-state solution following the rejection of the proposal by the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, media reports said.
Reports said that at least 27 EU ministers will first meet with Israel’s foreign minister Israel Katz following by a meeting with Palestinian Authority’s top diplomat Riyad al-Maliki. “Katz and Maliki are not expected to meet each other,” media reports said.
Media report from Middle East said that the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia will also hold talks with the European ministers. On October 7, last year, Hamas attacked the southern parts of Israel killing at least 1200 people, taking over 200 people as hostages. Around 105 Israeli hostages have been already released by the Hamas.
Israel has killed near 25,105 Palestinians since October 7 while injuring 62,681– mostly infants and women.
Over 25,000 Palestinians killed
Gaza Health Ministry on Monday said the death toll from Israeli strikes since war broke out in October last has passed 25,000, media reports said.
The ministry said that 25,105 Palestinians — many of them women and children — had been killed and 62,681 have been wounded in Israeli strikes since October 7.
“178 Palestinians had been killed in the past 24 hours, one of the deadliest days of the war so far. Israel’s military said a soldier was killed in fighting,” the ministry said.
Media reports also said that Israeli forces and Hamas fighters clashed in several places, from Jabalia in the north to Khan Younis in the south, the focus of recent Israeli operations. “Israeli planes resumed heavy bombing on Khan Younis in the south of the Gaza Strip and explosions echoed throughout the city,” reports said.
They said that explosions lit the skies in parts of the Khan Younis refugee camp, and Palestinian health officials said one Palestinian was killed and seven wounded in one air strike as night fell. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday denounced Israel for what he called the “heartbreaking” deaths of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
“Israel’s military operations have spread mass destruction and killed civilians on a scale unprecedented during my time as secretary-general,” Guterres said.
Protesters call for change to Netanyahu govt
Protesting against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration and demanding fresh elections, thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday. They accused the seasoned leader of mismanaging the country’s security.
Protests against the government that rocked the country for most of 2023 came to an end on October 7, following Hamas assaults in southern Israel. Israelis united behind the troops and the families of those slain or captured, putting aside political differences.
Though there is no sign that Netanyahu’s position is in danger, calls for leadership changes are becoming louder in light of the disastrous war in Gaza, which is now in its fourth month, and opinion surveys that suggest Netanyahu’s support is declining.
The attendance on Saturday night at a key Tel Aviv square, the scene of many of the protests of the previous year, was indicative of this.
Even though there were fewer individuals in the audience than the previous year, there were still several thousand of them, and many of them were waving Israeli flags, voicing their displeasure, and beating on drums.
“The government that abandoned us on Oct. 7 continues to abandon us every day since – those evacuated from the northern and southern (borders), the families of the victims, the reservists, the hostages,” said Noam Alon, whose brother, a soldier, was killed trying to clear an Israeli town from Hamas gunmen.
“The power is in our hands to change and repair,” she said from the stage. “This government needs to go home. Now!” And the crowd answered her, shouting: “Now! Now!”
While divisions have emerged among members of his wartime cabinet, Netanyahu is intent on staying in power.
Opposition leaders have offered to form a unity government not led by Netanyahu, but no moves have gained traction.
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