ROME (Dispatches) – Tens of thousands of people marched through the streets of Rome on Saturday as Italy’s opposition parties joined forces to demand an end to the Zionist regime’s genocidal war in Gaza, Anadolu reports.
Under the banner “Stop the massacre in Gaza, end complicity,” the demonstration was organized by the center-left Democratic Party, the populist Five Star Movement, and the Greens and Left Alliance.
Protesters carried Palestinian flags and banners condemning the Zionist regime as they marched from Vittorio Emanuele Square to San Giovanni Square, where a large rally was held.
Among those marching was Annapaola, who called the government’s position on Gaza “shameful.”
“If we don’t speak out in clear terms, Western democracy will die alongside Gaza,” she said.
Another protester, Angelo, said he had attended every demonstration related to Palestine.
“What’s happening is horrific,” he said. “And the worst part is that no one talks about it. Everyone stays silent.”
At the post-march rally, leaders of the three organizing parties delivered speeches, criticizing Israeli brutality and “ethnic cleansing.”
“We’ve had enough of illegal occupations, enough of bombed schools,” Democratic Party leader Elly Schlein told the crowd. “More than 50,000 people have died, including over 15,000 children. These are not just numbers – they’re shattered lives and destroyed families.”
Five Star Movement leader Giuseppe Conte echoed that view, saying: “What do we call all of this?” Genocide.”
Conte accused Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government of hypocrisy and inaction, claiming some cabinet ministers had only recently begun acknowledging the civilian death toll.
Solidarity events were also held in other cities across Italy, including a pro-Palestinian march in Milan.
Around 15,000 demonstrators also marched through Central Sydney on Saturday, voicing solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Israeli war in Gaza.
Organized by the Palestine Action Group, the protest saw streets shut down as participants waved Palestinian flags and chanted slogans such as “Palestine will never die.”
Israel, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a genocidal campaign in Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 55,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Aid agencies have warned of the dire risk of famine among the enclave’s more than 2 million inhabitants.