LONDON

A rally was staged Thursday in front of the Egyptian embassy in London calling for the Rafah border crossing to be kept open to ensure aid reaches Gaza.

The protesters, who also called for a complete cease-fire in Gaza, carried banners saying "Free Palestine," "Allow aid to enter Gaza" and "Open the Rafah border crossing.”

They chanted pro-Palestinian slogans in English and Arabic.

Police took extensive security measures in front of the embassy and on the street where it is located.

One of the demonstrators, Anna, who declined to provide her full name, told Anadolu they joined the action as the Movement for Justice group.

"First and foremost, we are here to demand the opening of Egypt's borders because we want victory for the Palestinian struggle,” she said.

"This also means the end of Israel's policies such as massacres and genocide, and the end of occupation. This is how we can see the freedom of Palestinians. Right now, we really need the borders to be opened for all the necessary aid that Palestinians need. They are resisting. They have the right to have their own state. We want to see an end to these genocides,” she added.

Israel launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip following a cross border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

The Palestinian death toll from Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has soared to 14,854, the government media office in the blockaded enclave said Thursday.

The victims include 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, while more than 36,000 people have been injured, it said.

Around 7,000 people remain unaccounted for, including more than 4,700 children, it added.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

The Israeli attacks have also destroyed 88 mosques and partly damaged 174 others, while three churches were targeted.

*Writing by Esra Tekin in Istanbul