Thousands gather in Rochdale for 'Free Palestine' rally

Date published: 18 May 2021

Thousands of people gathered at the Rochdale Memorial Gardens and Cenotaph to support the people of Palestine on Sunday (16 May), amidst ongoing conflict with Israel.

Rochdale’s rally was one of hundreds co-ordinated around the world, protesting against Israeli military attacks on the Gaza Strip, organised by members of the community with around 2,000 in attendance.

Organiser Kalsoom Khanum, who works with Palestinian families, said: “I feel like people need to know what’s going on and to create awareness that innocent people are being killed. This has been going on for decades and enough is enough. Innocent children and women are dying; humans, regardless of religion.

“If everyone comes together, it shows Palestinian families that we are in solidarity with them and that Rochdale wants to be heard.

“It was amazing to see everyone come together to stand in solidarity for the people of Palestine. We still need to continue to pray for the people of Palestine and we need to continue to raise awareness and speak out and be voices for the people of Palestine.

“In sha Allah, a day will come when all the oppression will stop and there will be no need to do such events.”

Over 120 people have been killed in Gaza since the fighting began last Monday (10 May), according to the BBC, with the fighting being triggered after days of 'rising tensions' between Palestinians and Israeli police in Jerusalem.

The most recent fighting is understood to have started after Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007, demanded Israel remove police from a holy site in East Jerusalem, launching rockets when this went unheeded.

Since Monday, Hamas - classified as a terror organisation by a majority of Western governments, including the European Union and the United States - has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel, which responded with tank fire and air strikes. Eight have died in Israel, including a six-year-old boy.

The airstrike on Gaza on Saturday is understood to have killed at least 10 Palestinians, mostly children, and is the deadliest single strike since this week’s fighting began.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the country's operation against Palestinian militants would continue for 'as long as necessary'.

Similar ‘Free Palestine’ rallies took place across the world on Sunday, with thousands marching on London’s Israeli embassy, calling for the government to “take immediate action.”

Conflict between Israel and Palestine has persisted for decades. 

When World War One ended, Great Britain took control over the area which became known as Palestine (modern-day Israel, the Gaza Strip, and the West Bank).

Palestine was controlled by the British until Israel became an independent state in 1947. History.com, a partner of television’s History Channel, says the area’s “complex hostility” dates back to ancient times, when both Jews and Arab Muslims populated the area and deemed it holy.

The United Nations approved a plan to partition Palestine into a Jewish and Arab state in 1947, but this was rejected.