Moroccans waving Palestinian flags took to the streets of the capital Rabat on Sunday calling on the government to cut ties with Israel in protest against continued Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip which have killed thousands of civilians.

Protests against Israel’s war in Gaza have repeatedly drawn thousands of people in Morocco since the conflict began two months ago, mostly led by pan-Arab and Islamist groups.

Sunday’s march by about 3,000 protesters was the first to have been led by the PJD, Morocco’s biggest Islamist party which led the elected government from 2011 until 2021, a sign the movement is growing more vocal in Opposition.

Protesters chanted “Palestine is not for sale”, “Resistance go ahead to victory and liberation” and “the people want an end to normalisation”, referring to the policy of Morocco and other Arab states normalising ties with Israel.

Israel vowed to annihilate Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, after Hamas militants burst across the fence on October 7 and went on a rampage through Israeli towns, gunning down families in their homes, killing 1,200 people and seizing 240 hostages.

Since then, Gaza’s health authorities say at least 17,700 people have been confirmed killed in Israeli strikes, with thousands more missing and presumed dead under the rubble.