For the first time since the start of Operation Protective Edge against Hamas, three weeks ago, thousands of people demonstrated their support for Israel in Paris Thursday in front of the Israeli embassy.
The umbrella representative group of Fernch Jewish organizations (CRIF) had called on “all friends of Israel” to assemble in front of the embassy. Hundreds of riot police have been deployed near the embassy.
Several thousand people, waving Israeli flags, turned out for the rally, waving signs with slogans like "Gaza hostage of Hamas" and "We protest for peace."
The demonstration happened amid persistent reports the Jewish Defense League faces a government ban. JDD militants stepped in to assure security at synagogues during pro-Gaza protests, but were blamed for provoking violence at pro-Palestinian rallies.
Roger Cukierman, head of CRIF, said that Israel has the "right and duty to defend its citizens."
Another pro-Israel event was planned Thursday evening in the French central-eastern city of Lyon, the hometown of a Franco-Israeli IDF soldier killed in Gaza on July 20.
A pro-Israel rally took place last Sunday in the southern city of Marseille that organisers said gathered 6,000 people.
France is home to Europe’s largest Jewish and Muslim populations.