Financial support of €2,000 per month from the Occupy for Gaza Movement is directed towards assisting families residing in Gaza.
In the heart of Lisbon, Portugal, a vigil was held recently at Largo do Carmo, marking a poignant moment in the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The event, organised by the Ocupy for Gaza movement, was attended by around fifty people who gathered to honour journalist Anas al-Sharif of Qatar's Al Jazeera station, who was tragically killed in an Israeli bombing in Gaza.
Patricia Batista, a prominent member of the Ocupy for Gaza movement, spoke at the vigil, emphasising the importance of not turning a blind eye to the conflict in the Middle East and amplifying the movement for the defence of humanity. She denounced the ongoing violence in Gaza, describing it as a crime against humanity and a struggle against oppression.
The current offensive in Gaza, which has been ongoing for several months, marks a heightened phase of violence with serious humanitarian consequences. As of mid-2025, the Israeli military response has led to over 61,000 deaths in Gaza, exacerbating a severe humanitarian crisis and causing extensive damage to the Palestinian territory's infrastructure.
The conflict, which originates from disputes over land, national identity, and political sovereignty, dating back more than a century, has been marked by repeated escalations and intermittent periods of relative calm. In recent years, there have been multiple flare-ups of violence between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist militant group that controls Gaza. These escalations typically involve rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel and Israeli airstrikes and ground operations targeting militant infrastructure.
Efforts to reach a peaceful resolution have repeatedly stalled, with deep divisions both within Palestinian leadership (between Hamas in Gaza and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank) and between Israel and Palestine, as well as geopolitical rivalries influencing the dynamics. The ongoing Israeli offensive in Gaza was triggered by unprecedented attacks by the Palestinian Islamic movement Hamas on October 7, 2023, resulting in approximately 1,200 deaths and over 200 hostages.
Citizens worldwide are taking various actions, including signing petitions, boycotting companies, and protesting to demand an end to the war in Gaza. The vigil in Lisbon was just one of many such events, reflecting a growing global concern for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the need for a lasting peace.
As Patricia Batista stated, "Humanitarian crisis needs to be resolved, we can't keep going on like this." The ongoing conflict in Gaza continues to be one of the most complex and volatile in the world, and the situation remains highly fluid, with ongoing developments that can rapidly change the dynamics on the ground.
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