HUNDREDS of protesters gathered in the city centre this evening to show solidarity with Palestine following violent clashes in Jerusalem.
Crowds began gathering at The Clock Tower in Brighton at 6pm for a socially distanced rally that called on an end to violence against the Palestinian community.
Protesters flew Palestinian flags and held signs that read "Save Shekih Jarrah" and “Freedom for Palestine.”
Some campaigners climbed onto a ledge just above the base of the tower and hung a banner which read: “Save Shekih Jarrah – Stop All Israeli Ethnic Cleansing.”
Speakers included members of the Brighton and Hove Palestine Solidarity Campaign and members of the Palestinian community were also invited to speak.
Chants of “free Palestine” could be heard with the crowd erupting with cheers in response.
Stewards wearing black high-vis jackets were present, handing out masks and hand-sanitiser among the crowd.
The protest was organised after hundreds of Palestinians and about two dozen police officers were hurt amid the worst religious unrest in years.
At least 180 Palestinians were injured in clashes with Israeli police at a Jerusalem holy site, Palestinian medics said, with 80 taken to hospital.
It came as police fired tear gas and stun grenades, some of them landing in the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Israeli police said Palestinians had hurled stones, chairs and other objects at officers and onto an adjoining road near the Western Wall, where thousands of Israeli Jews had gathered to pray.
In a statement, police alleged extremists were behind the violence and said they would “not allow extremists to harm the safety and security of the public”.
The latest violence at the mosque compound came after days of mounting tensions between Palestinians and Israeli authorities in the Old City of Jerusalem, the emotional ground zero of the conflict.
The holy site, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary, is considered the holiest site in Judaism and the third holiest in Islam.
The compound is the epicentre of the conflict and has been the trigger for rounds of Israel-Palestinian violence in the past.
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