Tens of thousands of demonstrators in Morocco, Mauritania, Lebanon, and Yemen took to the streets on Friday to demand an immediate end to the nearly two-year-long U.S.-backed Israeli genocide in Gaza, which has killed more than 65,000 Palestinians and left the besieged strip on the brink of famine.

In Morocco, major cities including Tangier, Casablanca, Tetouan, Marrakech, Kenitra, Fez, Meknes, and Agadir witnessed massive rallies following Friday prayers. Protesters condemned the Israeli blockade and systematic starvation of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, calling on Arab governments to immediately cancel normalization agreements with the Zionist regime. Demonstrators held Palestinian flags aloft, raised portraits of resistance leaders including Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Deif, and chanted for a boycott of Israeli goods and international corporations complicit in the occupation’s war crimes.

In the capital Rabat, thousands gathered in front of the parliament building, denouncing what they described as “the longest and bloodiest genocide in modern history.” Protesters demanded Israeli leaders be prosecuted at the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity, while expressing support for the international solidarity fleet currently sailing toward Gaza to deliver life-saving aid despite Israeli threats.

In Mauritania, hundreds rallied outside the Grand Mosque in Nouakchott, where fiery speeches condemned global silence and the U.S.’s full military and political backing of Israel. Protesters carried placards reading “Starving Gaza is a war crime” and renewed calls for the expulsion of the U.S. ambassador from Nouakchott.

In Lebanon, the northern city of Tripoli witnessed a popular march under the slogan “We will not leave Gaza alone.” The event, organized by the Committee for the Defense of Al-Aqsa, drew large crowds that filled central streets. Sheikh Nasser al-Tikriti, addressing participants, said: “We tell our brothers and sisters in Gaza: you are not alone. Your steadfastness has humbled the tyrants and inspired the free people of the world.”

In Yemen, the largest demonstrations were held, with hundreds of thousands of people flooding Sana’a and several other provinces following a call from Abdul Malik al-Houthi, leader of Ansar Allah. Protesters raised Palestinian and Yemeni flags alongside banners declaring: “With Gaza, we will not accept the disgrace of betrayal.”

A joint statement read at the end of the Sana’a protest pledged to continue weekly marches until the aggression ends, praising Palestinian armed resistance and openly endorsing Ansar Allah’s military operations targeting Israeli and U.S. interests in the Red Sea.

The protests come as Gaza faces one of the worst humanitarian catastrophes in modern history. According to health authorities in the Strip, at least 65,174 Palestinians have been killed and over 166,000 wounded since October 7, 2023 – the majority of them women and children. Entire neighborhoods lie in ruins, famine is spreading in northern Gaza, and aid agencies warn that the enclave is experiencing a collapse of all basic services, including health care and clean water.

Despite repeated international calls for a ceasefire, the U.S. has used its veto power at the UN Security Council to block resolutions aimed at halting the slaughter, while continuing to supply Israel with precision bombs, artillery shells, and political cover.

Friday’s coordinated protests across the Arab world were seen as a clear message to both Western governments and regional regimes: the people of the region stand firmly with Gaza’s resistance and will not remain silent in the face of genocide. (ILKHA)