Thousands rally in Rabat to support Palestinians

Thousands of Moroccans marched in the center of Rabat on Saturday to show their support for the Palestinian people and denounce the normalization of relations with Israel.

Demonstrators carried portraits of Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was killed earlier this week in Iran.

Hamas had called for a "day of rage" on Friday to coincide with the funeral of Haniyeh, who was killed two days earlier in a strike attributed to Israel by both the Islamist movement and Tehran. Israel has not commented on the incident.

Waving Palestinian flags, holding portraits of Haniyeh, and carrying a cardboard coffin bearing his likeness, thousands marched to the Parliament, many wearing black and white keffiyehs.

The crowd chanted, "Greetings from Rabat to our friends in Gaza and the Qassam Brigades," and "The people want the end of normalization," reflecting the messages on numerous placards. An Israeli flag was seen being burned during the protest.

Banners at the rally, organized by the National Action Group for Palestine—a coalition of leftist groups and the Islamist Justice and Development Party—read, "Ismail Haniyeh is the way," and "America is a terrorist."

Since the beginning of the war in Gaza on October 7, triggered by an unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israeli soil, there have been several large-scale protests in Morocco calling for the end of normalization with Israel. Previously, opposition to the normalization process had been limited.

The Moroccan government has officially called for "an immediate, comprehensive, and lasting end to the Israeli war on Gaza" without directly questioning the normalization of relations.

Hamas and Tehran have vowed to avenge the death of Ismail Haniyeh, who was in Iran for the inauguration of the new president, raising fears of escalating tensions in the region amidst the ongoing war in Gaza.