Fiery protests against Israeli offensive erupt in Europe, Lebanon
BERLIN
Protesters burned Israeli flags in Sweden and threw shoes at the U.S. consulate in Edinburgh, Scotland. In central London, three officers were hurt when demonstrators hurled shoes and placards at police outside the Israeli Embassy. One officer was knocked unconscious.
But in Innsbruck, Austria, volunteer security personnel arranged by the Islamic organizers of a demonstration moved quickly to surround and protect an elderly man after he suddenly unrolled an Israeli flag in the middle of the protest.
Israel says its 2-week-old offensive is intended to stop Palestinian Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel. Palestinian medical officials say more than 800 people have been killed.
A crowd of 12,000 gathered in London’s Hyde Park carrying placards reading “Gaza: Stop the massacre” and chanting “free, free Palestine.”
Police said 15 people were arrested after a group of about 2,000 demonstrators clashed with police guarding the Israeli embassy. Two were detained on suspicion of assaulting police officers.
Scores of marches were held across France, the biggest of them in the capital, where police estimated 30,000 people took part. Paris police scuffled with a small group toward the end.
Police estimated that 30,000 people protested in the northern Spanish city of Barcelona, some carrying bloodstained blankets and mock dead bodies of children.
The demonstration had been called by around 300 Catalan groups that have asked the Spanish government to back cease-fire initiatives and to stop all trade, especially arms, with Israel.
In Italy, several thousand people carrying Palestinian flags marched in Milan, Florence and Venice to protest the Israeli offensive.
In Milan, protesters burned a white sheet with the Star of David on it, and some participants carried posters with the Israeli flag and a swastika on them, the ANSA news agency reported.
In Germany, some 8,500 people rallied in Berlin’s Alexanderplatz and then marched to the city’s main train station. Hundreds of police were deployed along the route, and several Hamas flags were confiscated from the protesters. No serious incidents were reported, however, police said.
Original text: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008614524_gazaprotest10.html?syndication=rss
