Hundreds of people gathered outside the Wilshire Federal Building in Westwood Monday afternoon to protest the treatment of Palestinians in Gaza.
Titled “Hands Off Rafah,” the event was intended to bring awareness to the southern Gaza city where more than 1 million Palestinians gathered after being told they would be safe there, as reported by NPR.
Instead, Israeli air strikes and a planned ground invasion might force refugees to relocate once more after four months of fighting.
While Israel says the military actions in Rafah are necessary to eradicate Hamas, the perpetrators of the devastating Oct. 7 attack, some — including American officials — are demanding that more be done to protect civilians, of whom at least 28,000 have been killed.
In Westwood, the organization LA4Palestine and its supporters held Palestinian flags and demanded the U.S. withhold aid to Israel until the “apartheid” conditions in Israel end.