Thousands protest outside Israeli embassy over Gaza air-strikes

(13 Jul 2014) A huge crowd has gathered near the Israeli Embassy in London to protest against Israel's military offensive in Gaza. Police tried to keep the road clear for traffic - but protesters in their thousands blocked it for a couple of hours. A man waves a Palestinian flag from the roof of a double-decker bus. A large crowd of fellow protesters swells around him. This is Kensington High Street, a busy shopping street in west London - and a stone's throw from the gated road that's home to the Israeli Embassy. Israeli's military offensive in Gaza has killed more than 160 Palestinians. And, with its tanks and soldiers massing at Gaza's borders, some fear it could signal a wider ground offensive that would cause heavy casualties. Activists moved quickly to drum up support for Saturday's rally, mobilising protesters via social media in particular. Amena Saleem works for the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), one of the organisers. "People are really angry, they've been watching for the last five days," she says. "They have been watching children, women, men being massacred in Gaza. They know this is only going to get worse unless they stand up and say 'enough is enough'." She adds that "you can see how many people there are, and you can see absolutely how angry they are and how supportive they are of the Palestinians." Rally organisers claim that some 6,000 protesters gathered near the Israeli Embassy. London's Metropolitan Police, which does not routinely estimate crowd numbers, has not given any figures. However, during the protest, police officers are unable to keep the road open to traffic and the protesters block it for two hours. Organisers say further protests are planned for the coming week. On Tuesday, demonstrators plan to march on the headquarters of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to protest against its coverage of the Gaza conflict. And on Saturday, many thousands are expected to march from central London to the Israeli Embassy. Israeli's offensive in Gaza marks the heaviest fighting since a similar eight-day campaign in November 2012 to stop rocket fire. Israel has launched more than 1,300 air strikes since the offensive began, a military spokesman said on Sunday. Palestinian militants have launched more than 800 rockets at Israel, including 130 in the last 24 hours, the Israeli military added. Several Israelis have been wounded, but there have been no fatalities. Israel has said it's acting in self-defence against rockets that have disrupted life across much of the country. It also accuses Hamas of using Gaza's civilians as human shields by firing rockets from there. Critics say Israel's heavy bombardment of one of the most densely populated territories in the world is itself the main factor putting civilians at risk. The outbreak of violence follows the kidnappings and killings of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank, the kidnapping and killing of a Palestinian teenager in an apparent revenge attack, and wide-ranging Israeli moves against Hamas militants and infrastructure in the West Bank. 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/2e2f3a95e29bcb0506afe928088d0ffa