Indonesia condemns US support of Israel

More than a thousand Indonesian Muslims gathered after Friday prayers outside the US Embassy in Jakarta to denounce US support of the Zionist occupation.

The demonstrators organised rallies from several mosques after the prayers and went to the main street outside the US Embassy, ​​under heavy police presence, reported the Associated Press.

The protesters stopped the traffic on the road leading to the embassy, ​​chanting the slogans “Allah Akbar” and “Save the Palestinians”.

The Indonesian authorities called for the protesters to maintain social distancing during the demonstration organised by the Muslim Students’ Association and other groups.

The news agency quoted local media reports stating that at least ten other cities across Indonesia had witnessed similar protests on Friday in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

READ: Indonesia group stands in solidarity with Palestinians in Al-Aqsa

Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population globally, does not have formal diplomatic relations with the Zionist occupation nor an Israeli Embassy.

Jakarta has been a strong supporter of the Palestinian people, as President Joko Widodo condemned the recent Zionist aggression on Gaza.

On Friday at dawn, a ceasefire came into effect between the Palestinian factions and Israel after 11 days of bombings in Gaza.

Since 13 April, the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories has exploded following brutal attacks carried out by the Israeli police and settlers in occupied Jerusalem, particularly against Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood, in an attempt to evict 12 Palestinian families from their homes to be handed over to settlers.

Tensions in the Gaza Strip have dramatically escalated after Israel launched a massive military operation on 10 May, resulting in massacres and widespread destruction of buildings and infrastructure.

The brutal Israeli aggression against Palestinian Authority-controlled territories and Arab towns in Israel has resulted in the deaths of 274 people, including 70 children, 40 women and 17 elderly people. More than 8,900 have been injured, 90 of whom are in critical condition.

READ: Has Gaza changed the world’s perspective of Palestine-Israel?