ROME: Pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Spain, Italy, Ireland, France, Germany, and Switzerland blocked traffic and vandalised shops and restaurants following Israeli interception of a Gaza-bound humanitarian aid flotilla.

More than 400 foreign activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, were arrested.

In Barcelona, protesters smashed windows and spray-painted anti-Israel slogans on stores, including Starbucks, Burger King, and Carrefour.

Some participants criticized the vandalism, urging peaceful protest instead.

Students in Milan, Rome, and Bologna occupied university campuses and blocked access using car tyres.

Protests extended to Turin, where traffic was disrupted. Italian unions called for a general strike and over 100 rallies nationwide in support of the flotilla.

Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto criticized disruptive protest tactics.

Thousands demonstrated in Dublin, Paris, Berlin, and Geneva.

International rallies also occurred in Buenos Aires, Mexico City, and Karachi.

In Istanbul, crowds gathered outside the Israeli embassy, condemning the ongoing Gaza offensive.

The conflict in Gaza has resulted in over 66,000 deaths, according to Palestinian authorities.

Israel launched the offensive after the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that killed around 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 hostages to Gaza.