Downtown Toronto pro-Palestinian rally and sit-in draws large police presence
CTV
A pro-Palestinian rally in Toronto drew a large police presence Saturday evening after thousands of people parked themselves in a busy intersection in the downtown core.
A pro-Palestinian rally in Toronto drew a large police presence Saturday evening after thousands of people parked themselves in a busy intersection in the downtown core.
The rally, part of the Palestinian Youth Movement’s “national day of action for Palestine”, began at the U.S. consulate on University Avenue just north of Queen Street West at 2 p.m.
The crowd looped through the downtown core, stopping in front of Queen’s Park before heading to around Wellington and Bay streets. The participants held signs that said “end the siege” and “free Palestine.”
Thousands of people remained north of Bay Street for hours, participating in a sit-in for the cause.
A statement by the Palestinian Youth Movement said the sit-in will end when Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow apologizes “for maligning the Toronto Palestinian community and calls for an immediate ceasefire.”
On Oct. 7, the day that militant group Hamas first infiltrated towns along the Gaza Strip, taking Israeli people hostage, Chow wrote on social media that she condemned the violence while also acknowledging the “Palestinian pain and severe loss of life.”
Pro-Palestinian activists initially slammed Chow for condemning the attacks on Israelis. After she added a post about acknowledging Palestinian pain, she was slammed by pro-Israel activists as justifying the attacks on civilians.
