Groups plan massive march for Gaza cease-fire in DC next week
Supporters of Palestine will hold a "March on Washington for Gaza" next week to draw attention to the crushing human impact of the Israel-Hamas war and call for a cease-fire three months after militants launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and other organizers will begin the Gaza solidarity event at the National Mall on Jan. 13 at 1 p.m., gathering near the Washington Monument.
Organizers of the march, which has the backing of more than 100 groups, also seek to end American aid to the Israel's military, which they accuse of carrying out a genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
According to a media advisory, organizers expect the march to be the largest pro-Palestine event in the nation's capital since the latest conflict broke out.
"President Biden has spent three months ignoring the screams of Palestinian children trapped under the rubble of their homes and the cries of grieving mothers in besieged hospitals across Gaza," organizers said in a news release.
"This must end. We must ensure that President Biden hears the voices of the American people loudly and clearly outside the White House on Saturday, Jan. 13th."
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said the rally is intended to "show elected officials that they are defying the clear call of the people to end our nation’s complicity in war crimes. Americans can and should stop this genocide by holding the Biden administration accountable."
Israel announced over the weekend that it would pull tanks out of Gaza City and thousands of troops from the wider operation, however it also said it would continue the war until Hamas is taken out.
The death toll in the Gaza Strip has topped 22,000 since Israel launched its war in response to the Oct. 7 attack in which Hamas militants killed some 1,200 people in Israel.
The United Nations has also warned that half of Gaza's population of about 2.2 million is at risk of starvation, with 90 percent saying they regularly go without food for a whole day.