'Biden, you can't hide': Tens of thousands in US march to demand ceasefire in Gaza

 Large demonstrations in Washington, D.C. express anger over President Joe Biden's unwavering support for Israel.

Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters in the US capital have called for a ceasefire in Gaza [Al Jazeera]

Washington DC. - Washington has resisted calls to end the war despite a rising death toll, with tens of thousands gathering in the US capital calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Demonstrators in Washington, D.C., on Saturday turned their anger on U.S. President Joe Biden, accusing him of enabling the genocide against the Palestinians. "Biden, Biden, you can't hide; we charge you with genocide," demonstrators shouted.

United Nations experts have warned of a growing risk of genocide in Gaza after Hamas attacked southern Israeli communities on October 7 and Israel launched relentless bombing of the Gaza enclave.

The United Nations Convention on Genocide defines genocide as “acts committed with the intent to destroy in whole or in part a national, ethnic, racial or religious group,” including killing and sterilization. The Biden administration has urged Israel to “minimise” civilian casualties, but also insisted that it is not drawing any “red lines” for how the US ally conducts its military operations.

Thousands of protesters have rallied in support of Palestinians in Washington, DC

Biden also asked Congress to provide more than $14 billion in aid to Israel to fund the ongoing war in Gaza, which health authorities say has killed at least 9,488 Palestinians in the Hamas-ruled enclave. Many demonstrators at Saturday's rally called on the United States to halt aid to Israel. Demonstrations stretched east from Liberty Plaza near the White House to several blocks from the U.S. Capitol.

Al Jazeera interviewed many protesters. This is what they said:

Nidaa, demonstrator from Gaza

Nidaa, who chose to be identified by her first name only, said her family in Gaza is experiencing constant bombardment with no safe place in the entire territory.

“Stop the war. Stop the bombing. Stop this genocide in Gaza – that’s the number one message we are sending today, and I hope our government will listen to us. I hope our people in Gaza, in Palestine in general, know that we are here. Hopefully, they will hear our voices to at least to cheer them up a little bit – that they are not alone.”

Pro-Palestinian protesters have called for an end to US aid to Israel 

David Horowitz, Jewish-American activist

Horowitz fatigued the charge for a ceasefire, calling the annihilation in Gaza an “abomination”. He additionally airtight the Biden administration’s alarm for altruistic pauses as insufficient.

“We should be calling for a ceasefire, and instead they’re talking about a ‘pause’, which isn’t absolutely a abeyance of anything. They’re activity to let the accumulation trucks through, and again they’re activity to abide to fight. It’s a delicacy and the accessible doesn’t accept that. It absolutely is not a ceasefire.”

Pro-Palestinian activists have warned that the population of Gaza is at risk of genocide [Al Jazeera]

Ayan Yusuf, Somali-American protester

Yusuf came to Washington, DC from Boston to attend the rally. She said the Biden administration is not seeing Palestinians’ humanity.

“We are here to speak for the innocent people. We are here to let the world know that what Israel and the United States are doing is not self-defence; it’s a genocide. And we’re not supporting that regardless of religion, regardless of our ways, regardless of agenda. We are all human beings.”

Some pro-Palestinian voters in the US say they will no longer vote for US President Joe Biden due to his support for Israel [Al Jazeera]

Pro-Palestinian protesters say the Biden administration is not recognising Palestinians’ humanity