London witnesses anti-Egypt protest

At least 200 protestors gathered Friday outside the Egyptian Embassy in London after news spread that Gaza peace activists had been beaten by Egyptian police in Cairo.

The protest was organized by the British Muslim Initiative in association with the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign.

The demonstrators called on the Egyptian president to allow the international aid convoy “Viva Palestina” to enter Gaza through the Egyptian border.

More than 200 vehicles packed with food and medicines left London on December 6 for Gaza. But they are now stranded at the Syrian port of Lattakia as the Egyptian authorities do not issue permits for the convoy to enter Gaza through the port city of El-Arish in Egypt.

The demonstrators in London chanted slogans such as “Mubarak Siege Must End”, “Mubarak Wall Must Fall”, “Free Free Palestine,” and “Mubarak Zionist.”

They also urged the ban on the entry of “Viva Palestina” convoy to be lifted.

The Egyptian government is building a steel wall along its border with Gaza to prevent the traffic of any goods to the blockaded strip. It is also avoiding opening of the Rafah crossing for international aid convoys to pass through Gaza.

Peace activists and human rights campaigners have called on Cairo to lift the ban and allow the flow of international aid into Gaza to avoid a humanitarian crisis.