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Hundreds have gathered at rallies in Belfast and Dublin to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
Demonstrations in support of Palestine were also planned in counties across the island of Ireland on Saturday including in Cork, Limerick, Armagh, Clare and Sligo.
The rally in Dublin marched from the GPO on O’Connell Street, and in Belfast protesters marched on Royal Avenue before gathering to listen to speakers at City Hall.
Crowds chanted “Free Palestine” and “stop Gaza genocide”, with some carrying signs reading “it’s ethnic cleansing not conflict” and “end Israeli apartheid”.
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Some at the rally in Dublin carried bundles of white fabric stained red to signify children killed in Israeli air strikes.
The Palestinian death toll in Gaza on Saturday rose to just over 7,700 people since October 7th, with 377 deaths reported since late on Friday, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza health ministry.
A majority of those killed have been women and children, the ministry said.
An Israeli military spokesman said Israel is expanding its ground operation in Gaza, with infantry and armoured vehicles backed by “massive” strikes.
Israel declared war on Hamas after its fighters launched an attack in southern Israel three weeks ago.
Speakers at the rally in Belfast included a number of representatives from the Muslim community in Northern Ireland.
Dr Hani Mahdi from Gaza called on those in attendance to remember the people of Gaza.
“Remember people are being killed, and living without electricity, gas, water and now no communication,” he said. “Just remember this when you feel down in your life, when you feel you have nothing left, just remember Gaza people.
“A lot of Palestinian people lost members of their family, but we will not stop demanding our rights. We will fight and struggle until our last drop of our blood.”
Dr Mahdi said he had lost 30 family members in Gaza.
“All our homes were destroyed. Most of our martyrs, our children and women, most of our young we don’t know where we are now,” he said.
“Unfortunately, Israel is continuing with this unhinged project of eliminating all of us and perhaps if I were not among you today, there is high possibility you would not see me today as my area was completely destroyed and levelled to the ground.”
Dr Mahdi called out to the crowd: “Where is the humanity?”
A number of local politicians spoke at the rally in Belfast including Sinn Féin MLA Declan Kearney, SDLP councillor Paul Doherty, People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll, and Green Party councillor Anthony Flynn.
Mr Kearney said demonstrations in support of Palestine are “more important than ever.”
Sinn Fein councillors abstained from a motion before Derry City and Strabane District Council on Wednesday calling for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassadors to Ireland and the UK.
A small number of people shouted from the crowd while Mr Harvey spoke, calling on his party to also support expulsion of the ambassador.
Also among politicians who spoke at the rally were representatives from a number of trade unions including Unison and the Irish National Teachers Organisation.
Paddy Mackel, chair of Belfast Trades Council, said the conflict “did not start three weeks ago”.
“You cannot ignore the illegal occupation of Palestine, the recolonisation of large parts of the occupied West Bank,” he said.
“The decades-long imprisonment by apartheid Israel of three million civilians in Gaza, the ongoing theft of Palestinian lands, the destruction of homes, the kidnapping and imprisonment without trial or legal support of hundreds of Palestinian children every single year.
“All of these actions have been carried out with impunity by the apartheid Israeli state that has really stepped when the rest of the world has colluded by remaining silent.”
Pro-Israel rallies have also been held in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators rallied in other cities in Europe, the Middle East and Asia on Saturday to show support for the Palestinians as Israel’s military widened its air and ground offensive on the Gaza Strip.
In one of the biggest marches, in London, aerial footage showed large crowds marching through the centre of the capital to demand the government of British prime minister Rishi Sunak call for a ceasefire.
“The superpowers at play are not doing enough at the moment. This is why we’re here: we’re calling for a ceasefire, calling for Palestinian rights, the right to exist, to live, human rights, all our rights,” said protester Camille Revuelta.
“This is not about Hamas. This is about protecting Palestinian lives,” she added. - PA