Activists protesting the killings of Palestinians in Gaza, including the deaths of women and children, during three days of intense fighting between Israel and Gaza militants are calling on the Canadian government to stop the sale of arms to Israel.
The protest Wednesday at the Human Rights Monument on Elgin Street came just days after the worst cross-border violence between Israel and Gaza militants since an 11-day war with Hamas last year.
On Aug. 5, Israel unleashed a wave of airstrikes on Gaza in what it called Operation Breaking Dawn. The Israeli military said it was targeting the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad in response to what it called on social media an "imminent threat of attack against Israeli civilians."
Israeli aircraft struck targets in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group retaliated by firing more than 1,000 rockets.
The death toll after three days of fighting has risen to 47 after a man later died from his wounds, the Health Ministry in Gaza said Thursday. Several militants were among those killed, including two senior Islamic Jihad commanders, one of whom Israel said it targeted in order to foil an imminent attack.
Also among the dead were 16 children and four women, the Health Ministry said.
Israel has said some of the deaths were caused by errant rocket fire from militants in Gaza, including one incident in the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza in which six Palestinians were killed Saturday. On Sunday, a projectile hit a home in the same area of Jabalia, killing two men.
Palestinian officials held Israel responsible, while Israel said it was investigating whether the area was hit by an errant rocket.
'Great turnout' at protest
In Ottawa Wednesday, people carrying pro-Palestinian flags and posters clustered around the Human Rights Monument.
After speeches calling on the Canadian government to examine its role in the crisis, they marched to the Prime Minister's Office and the Embassy of Israel in the downtown core.
"I think the core message of our protest is amplifying the Palestinians' right to resist," said Sarah Abdul-Karim, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement of Ottawa.