Anti-Israel protests took place around the world today to mark a “Day of Jihad” after former Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal called on Muslims to take to the streets to demonstrate amid the ongoing conflict.
‘[We must] “Go to the squares and streets of the Arab and Islamic world on Friday,” said Meshaal, who currently heads Hamas’ diaspora office.
The former Qatar-based terror leader said in comments recorded earlier this week that the governments and peoples of Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt had a greater duty to support the Palestinians.
On Friday, photos and videos published on X showed thousands of Iraqis flooding Tahir Square in Baghdad to support Hamas. As a sign of solidarity, huge Palestinian flags were laid out on the ground next to the Iraqi flag, while the Israeli flag was set on fire.
Protesters at the rally chanted: ‘No to occupation! No to America!’ According to Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr, the gathering was to “support Gaza.”
This came as images from Tokyo showed Muslims engaged in a standoff with police as they protested on the streets outside the Israeli embassy in the city. Less than 24 hours earlier, pro-Israel supporters were photographed outside the same building peacefully chanting in Hebrew.
IRAQ: Photos and videos published on X on Friday showed thousands of Iraqis flooding Tahir Square in Baghdad to support Hamas
JAPAN: Police officers jostle with members of the Muslim community in Japan during a rally in support of Hamas on Friday
MALAYSIA: Muslims burn Israeli flags during a rally in support of Hamas in Kuala Lumpur on Friday
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA: Anti-Israel protesters pictured in the Australian capital on Friday
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA: A protest in support of Palestine in Brisbane on Friday evening
INDONESIA: More than 200 people also gathered in front of the national monument in the Indonesian capital on Friday, waving banners to express solidarity with Palestinians
On Friday, Muslims gathered in mosques for their first Friday prayers since the Hamas attack. Islamic leaders in Indonesia appealed to all mosques in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country to pray for peace and security for the Palestinian people.
The head of the Indonesian Mosque Council had called on all mosques to offer the Qunut Nazilahto prayer, a protective prayer to ask for God’s help so that “the conflict in the Gaza Strip ends quickly.”
In New York City, home to around 1.6 million Jews, Mayor Eric Adams announced tightening security measures. This was despite New York Governor Kathy Hochul saying that the intelligence agency had not shown any specific threats of violence.
On Thursday, Los Angeles police said in a statement that they had deployed additional forces around Jewish cultural sites in response to Meshaal’s claims.
Meanwhile, Jewish schools in London announced they would close on Friday due to the threats. Similar measures were taken in the Dutch capital Amsterdam.
Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal’s call for Muslims to “take to the streets” following the terrorist group’s brutal attack on Israel has sparked global protests
Khaled Meshaal – a former Hamas chief – has called for protests across the Muslim world on Friday in support of the Palestinians
On Friday, Islamic leaders in Indonesia appealed to all mosques in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country to pray for peace and security for the Palestinian people
French riot police use tear gas to disperse protesters during a rally on October 12
A poster with the Israeli and Nazi flags is seen during a demonstration in support of the Palestinian people in Caracas, Venezuela
In Germany, the head of the Amadeu Antonio Foundation, which fights right-wing extremism, told : “We are somehow expecting the worst, especially after Hamas published posts calling for attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions today.”
Anti-Israel demonstrations are nothing new in Germany, especially in Berlin. Last April, for example, around 500 demonstrators gathered in Berlin’s Neukölln district for an anti-Israel demonstration, during which journalists covering the event were knocked off their feet, kicked, spat on and shouted “dirty Jew”, “Jewish shit”. were called. *’ and ‘Zionist Press’.
It became so violent and life-threatening that a team of 160 police officers present had to push their way through the crowd, trying to dodge shower after shower of rocks and wooden banners to rescue a journalist who had been knocked to the ground, and repeated showers of violence kicked.
Then German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser tweeted: “There is no place for anti-Semitism in our society.” “We must never get used to anti-Semitic insults – no matter where and who they come from.”
However, in view of the recent massacre in Israel, the current security situation for Jews in Germany must now also be viewed as critical, says the Amadeu Antonio Foundation.
People take part in a pro-Palestinian rally at Place République in Paris, France on October 12
Supporters of the conservative Muttahida Shariat Mahaz Pakistan party during a solidarity demonstration with the Palestinian people in Peshawar, Pakistan
On October 9th, a pro-Palestine protest will take place outside the Israeli embassy in London, Kensington
“Tribes of Jordan, sons of Jordan, brothers and sisters of Jordan… This is a moment of truth and the borders are close to you, you all know your responsibilities,” Meshaal said in a recorded statement. “To all scholars who teach jihad…to all who teach and learn, this is a moment of application (of theories).”
Jordan and Lebanon are home to the largest number of Palestinian refugees.
According to the Israel-run Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), based in Washington DC, Meshaal’s call for an uprising on Friday the 13th was echoed by Hamas itself.
MEMRI said Hamas had called on its followers in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel to rise up against the “al-Aqsa flood” – a reference to what mysterious Palestinian mastermind Mohammed Deif called the attack he launched on Saturday against Israel started.
The phrase “Israel’s most wanted man,” used in a tape broadcast as Hamas fired thousands of rockets from the Gaza Strip over the weekend, signaled that the attack was in retaliation for Israeli raids on Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque.
“We declare next Friday, ‘Al-Aqsa Flood Friday’, as a day of general mobilization in our Arab and Islamic world and among the free people of the world,” said Meshaal’s statement sent to Portal news agency.
“It’s a day to rally support, offer help and actively participate.”
“It is a day to expose the crimes of the occupation, to isolate them and to thwart all their aggressive plans.” It is a day to demonstrate our love for Palestine, Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.
“It is a day of sacrifice, heroism and devotion, and to earn the honor of defending the first Qibla of Muslims, the third holiest mosque and the ascension of the trusted Messenger.”
Clashes broke out between Palestinian and Israeli supporters in a London Underground station on Monday evening as police desperately tried to maintain peace
Pictures from Amsterdam show police parking in front of Jewish schools on Friday. Schools are closed on Friday
Meshaal also praised those involved in the attack in Israel. “Oh my brothers and sisters, oh my entire family and a quarter of this nation,” he said. “These are your brothers and sisters who created this glory.” They caused this flood: the Al-Aqsa flood.”
The terror group said everyone should support its “just cause.”
“We call on the free people of the world to mobilize in solidarity with our Palestinian people and in support of their just cause and their legitimate rights to freedom, independence, return and self-determination,” the group said.
Following Hamas’ attack on Israel on Saturday, there have already been several protests, including on the streets of Great Britain and Australia.
While some were held in solidarity with victims on both sides of the conflict, others highlighted the deep and ugly division felt around the world over the issue.
In London on Monday, pro-Palestinian protesters – some carrying flags and flares – beat drums and chanted: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” At other protests across the United Kingdom, activists declared: “There shall be bloodshed.”
Video showed dozens of police trying to separate protesters at High Street Kensington tube station in west London, while more than 1,000 pro-Palestinian activists gathered on the streets outside.
In Sheffield, video footage posted on social media showed two people scaling the city’s town hall and pulling down an Israeli flag during a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the building on Tuesday evening.
The flag was seen being thrown from the 200-foot-tall Victorian structure and replaced with the Palestinian flag, to the cheers of those gathered below.
On the other side of the world in Sydney on Monday, a pro-Palestinian rally outside the city’s famous opera house sparked outrage across the country after a small group was filmed shouting “gas Jews” while waving a Palestinian flag – in hideous scenes.
In response to the protests and the escalating situation in Israel, Australia’s domestic intelligence chief warned on Thursday of the possibility of opportunistic violence and called for calm as tensions rise ahead of another planned pro-Palestinian protest in response to the Israeli-Hamas standoff increase war.
In a rare public statement, Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO) head Mike Burgess said protests and rallies were likely to continue following the Hamas attacks and he remained concerned about opportunistic violence.
Spanish supporters of Israel gather in Madrid to show their solidarity with the Jewish state
The rally in the Spanish capital was held
Pro-Israel students protest at New York’s Columbia University following statements by a student group in support of Hamas
On Thursday, a woman who hosted a news conference by two Britons whose relatives were kidnapped by Hamas gunmen on Saturday condemned those who celebrated the atrocities.
At the start of the conference, the host gave an impassioned speech before handing the speech over to Noam and Sharon.
“Hamas… is a modern-day death squad. “They went door to door, ripping babies and children from their mothers’ beds and slaughtering them brutally and in cold blood,” she said.
“Girls were raped for the bodies of their friends, and many survivors were kidnapped.”
“These terrible acts were celebrated on the streets of Tehran, Gaza and even by some here in London.” We have never experienced such a traumatic event in Israel, which will take years, if not generations, to come to terms with.
“This is the largest hostage crisis the world has faced in decades,” she added.
Meshaal’s call to the Muslim world came as Israel vowed to step up its response to a Hamas attack with a ground offensive after Israeli warplanes struck more than 200 targets in Gaza City overnight.
Gaza’s health ministry said at least 1,354 people were killed and more than 6,000 injured in the crowded coastal enclave.
A protester is dragged away by police during a demonstration against neo-colonialism and globalization, where demonstrators chanted “Free Palestine!” in Berlin
Members of the New York Police Department’s counterterrorism unit patrol Times Square on Thursday. A former Hamas leader has declared a “day of jihad” for Friday
There is an increased police presence outside the Barclays Center ahead of a Brooklyn Nets preseason game on Thursday
On Saturday, Hamas gunmen from the Gaza Strip rampaged across parts of southern Israel, carrying out the deadliest single attack in Israel’s history.
The bodies of at least 1,300 people have been recovered, a number that could rise.
Most were civilians shot in their homes, on the street or at a dance party and attacked by gunmen rushing across the border from Gaza.
Numerous Israeli and foreign hostages were also returned to Gaza by the terrorists. Israel said it had identified 97 of them so far.
The full extent of the killings became clear in recent days after Israeli forces retook control of cities and found homes littered with bodies. They say they found women raped and killed and children shot and burned.
Israel has so far responded by completely laying siege to Gaza, home to 2.3 million people, and launching by far the heaviest bombardment in the 75-year history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, destroying entire neighborhoods.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said emergency generators in hospitals could run out of power within hours.
“The human misery caused by this escalation is abhorrent and I implore the sides to alleviate the suffering of civilians,” ICRC regional director Fabrizio Carboni said in a statement on Thursday.
“If Gaza loses power, hospitals will also lose power, putting newborns in incubators and elderly patients receiving oxygen at risk.” Kidney dialysis will stop and X-rays cannot be taken. Without electricity, hospitals risk becoming morgues.”
Clouds of smoke rise from Israeli air strikes in Gaza City on October 12, 2023
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Israel on Thursday on a trip to show solidarity with Israel, prevent an expansion of the war and press for the release of hostages, including American citizens.
He will also visit Jordan on Friday to meet King Abdullah and Mahmoud Abbas, the head of the Palestinian Authority, which operates limited self-rule in the West Bank.
Qatar is also working with the United States to establish a line of communication with Hamas to negotiate the release of hostages, a senior US official said on Wednesday.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was asked at an earlier briefing whether the government was in direct or indirect contact with Hamas to secure their release and whether he could describe their condition.
“Where they are and in what condition, no,” Kirby said.
He said the White House did not know whether they would be held together and whether they would be postponed.
“Unfortunately, we don’t know.” And that makes the effort very, very difficult.”
He also told ABC White House correspondent Mary Alice Parks that he was “not aware of any concrete evidence of the life of any individual hostage.”
Kirby added that the US is negotiating the release of the hostages with countries that have communication links to Hamas, such as Qatar. Several former senior Hamas leaders live in Qatar.