The demonstrations passed off peacefully. London police had threatened anyone openly supporting Hamas with arrest, while in Frankfurt a court cited security concerns for an order prohibiting a pro-Palestinian march
ADVERTISEMENTConflict in the Middle East prompted protest marches in Europe by groups demonstrating support for both Israel and Palestine in many major cities.
In Frankfurt a pro-Israel demonstration took place with marchers calling for the Hamas group behind last week’s terror attacks to be removed from Gaza.
The Hessian Administrative Court (VGH) in Kassel upheld a ban on pro-Palestinian protests, with the court deciding these might created an imminent threat to public safety.
No such ban was in place in the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Dusseldorf. About 700 people did show their support for Palestinians in a largely peaceful rally.
Hundreds of people also marched through Barcelona expressing their support for the Palestinian people caught up in the conflict between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza strip.
Among the protesters were Palestinians accompanied by immigrants from other Arab countries, as well as Spaniards.
The protest started at the Raval neighbourhood, where a large Arab community lives, and finished outside the European Union regional representation building in the centre of the city.
Thousands of people rallied in central London for a pro-Palestinian protest following police warnings that anyone showing support for the militant group Hamas could face arrest.
Attendees, who gathered near BBC News' headquarters in the morning, began a march through the British capital ahead of an afternoon rally near parliament.