Thousands gather outside Israeli embassy to protest against Gaza offensive

(18 Jul 2014) Thousands of protesters demonstrated outside the Israeli Embassy Trade Office in Johannesburg on Friday against Israel's military offensive in Gaza. Many carried placards reading "Save Gaza" and "Red Card Israel". "We are here to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people of Gaza and Palestine, and we are here to oppose the Israeli state of Israel," said one protester. Israeli troops pushed deeper into Gaza on Friday to destroy rocket launching sites and tunnels. Israel had been reticent about launching a ground offensive for fear of endangering its own soldiers and drawing international condemnation over mounting Palestinian civilian deaths. The assault opens a new, potentially extended and bloodier stage in the conflict following a 10-day Israeli campaign of more than 2,000 airstrikes against Gaza that had failed to halt relentless Hamas rocket fire on Israeli cities. More than 260 Palestinians have been killed and more than 2,000 wounded. Israel saw its first military death of the conflict in the early hours of the ground assault. One Israeli civilian died from mortar fire earlier in the week, and several others have been wounded. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/054e9a01315a7f92493f3af7697a7270