CAPE TOWN, Sunday, November 12, 2023 (WAFA) – Tens of thousands of people marched yesterday through the city center of Cape Town, South Africa, calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. It was one of the biggest protests in the city for several years, according to the South African-based Ground-Up news agency.
The march started at the Muir Street Mosque in District Six and ended at the Western Cape provincial legislature in Wale Street.
The protest, organized by several civil society organizations and political parties, comes more than a month after a relentless Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 11,100 people, including several thousand children.
Israeli settlers and soldiers have also been attacking Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, with nearly 200 Palestinians killed by Israeli occupation forces since October. 7
Marchers lined the streets of Cape Town with flags and posters. They chanted: “By the million, by the billion, we are all Palestinian” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
There were also chants directed at US President Joe Biden, such as: “How many children did you kill today?”
A statement from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign prior to the march read: “As members of the Cape Town community, we want to hold our provincial government accountable to the values espoused by the Constitution of South Africa. We want to remind our provincial government that statements are hollow without concomitant action and in order to live in a truly transformed South Africa, we must oppose all forms of racism, bigotry, discrimination and oppression.”
A statement from the South African Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Coalition has also called for an immediate ceasefire and a mass delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, especially in the northern region of the enclave where a starvation is starting to unfold as a result of the suffocating Israeli siege.
Father Michael Weeder, Dean of St George’s Cathedral, addressed the marchers. He called on world leaders to spend less money on wars and more money on peace-making. Reverend Allan Boesak reiterated the demand to shut down the Israeli embassy to South Africa.
M.N
