Moroccans protest Israel's offensive in Gaza and take aim at Trump

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RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Tens of thousands of Moroccans on Sunday protested Israel’s latest offensive in Gaza, putting fury toward U.S. President Donald Trump near the center of their grievances.

In the largest protest Morocco has seen in months, demonstrators denounced Israel, the United States and their own government. Some stepped on Israeli flags, held banners showing slain Hamas leaders and waved posters juxtaposing Trump alongside displaced Palestinians fleeing their homes.

Organizers condemned Israel’s ongoing military operation in Gaza. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed since Israel renewed air and ground strikes last month, aimed at pressuring Hamas to release remaining hostages.

Such protests have erupted across the Middle East and North Africa, where leaders typically worry about demonstrations undermining domestic stability. Pro-Palestinian rallies were also staged this weekend in the capitals of Tunisia and Yemen as well as in Morocco's most populous city Casablanca.

In countries that have historically aligned with the U.S., anti-Trump backlash has emerged as a theme. Demonstrators in Rabat on Sunday condemned his proposal to displace millions of Palestinians to make way for the redevelopment of Gaza. as well as the U.S. efforts to pursue pro-Palestinian activists.

Still, many Moroccans said they saw Trump’s policies as mostly consistent with his predecessor, Joe Biden’s.

“(Trump) has made the war worse,” said Mohammed Toussi, who travelled from Casablanca with his family to protest.

“Biden hid some things but Trump has shown it all,” he added, likening their positions but not their messaging.

Protestors, Toussi said, remain angry about Morocco’s 2020 decision to normalize ties with Israel.

Abdelhak El Arabi, an adviser to Morocco’s former Islamist prime minister, said the reasons Moroccans were protesting had grown throughout the war. He predicted popular anger would continue until the war ends.

“It’s not a war, Gaza is getting erased from the earth,” the 62-year-old Tamesna resident said.

Demonstrations have included a range of groups, including the Islamist association al Adl Wal Ihsan. Moroccan authorities tolerate most protests, but have arrested some activists who have rallied in front of businesses or foreign embassies or implicated the monarchy in their complaints.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostages. Most have since been released in ceasefire agreements and other deals. More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed as part of Israel’s offensive, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t say whether those killed are civilians or combatants. The war has left most of Gaza in ruins, and at its height displaced around 90% of the population.

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