MADRID / ISTANBUL
Palestinian children killed in Israel’s ongoing Gaza genocide were commemorated on Sunday in Spain’s capital Madrid.
During a demonstration in downtown Madrid, the names of more than 18,500 children killed by Israel in Gaza over the past two years were read aloud one by one via megaphone.
Ahead of the new school year starting Monday, teachers across Spain organized a series of protests under the slogan “Education against Genocide” to show solidarity with Palestine.
As part of these actions, a crowd gathered at Callao Square and held a nearly 12-hour-long demonstration.
The demonstration, which began early in the morning and was attended mainly by education sector workers, saw participants chanting slogans such as "Israel is a murderer.”
Each time the name of a child killed by Israel was read aloud, the crowd responded in unison with cries of "killed."
Jesus Bartolome, spokesperson for the group that organized the event, stressed that commemorating each child killed in Gaza over the past two years serves to condemn Israel's aggressive siege, food blockade, and the resulting mass famine and genocide.
He stressed that words are no longer enough and called for urgent government action.
Bartolome also urged Spain and the European Union to sever all ties with Israel.
During a Tuesday Cabinet meeting, Spain’s left-wing coalition government is expected to issue a decree banning arms sales to Israel.