A spontaneous rally in support of Palestine after an attack on a hospital in the Gaza Strip took place near the Israeli consulate in Istanbul; the police used tear gas to disperse the demonstrators, RIA Novosti reports.
Earlier, a representative of the Gaza Ministry of Health said that the attack on the Al-Ahly Baptist hospital in the Gaza Strip was carried out by Israel, more than 500 people were killed. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared three days of mourning for the victims.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, most of the dead were women and children. At the same time, the Israeli TV channel i24 reported that the initial investigation by the Israeli army showed that the explosion in a hospital in the Gaza Strip was caused by a failed Hamas rocket launch. The Israeli army later blamed the Islamic Jihad group for the tragedy.
Thousands of Istanbul residents responded to a spontaneous call to gather for a demonstration on Wednesday night. The street in the Levent district near the building where the diplomatic mission is located was blocked by police due to an endless crowd with flags. The demonstrators held flags of different countries and symbols of various groups and organizations.
There were calls to open humanitarian corridors into Gaza and even send Turkish troops there to help the Palestinians. The most frequent was takbir (the call “Allah is great”), and curses were often heard against Israel. Around midnight, police fired tear gas to drive away crowds that had come close to the consulate.
Protests are also taking place in other cities of Turkey.
