Pro-Palestinian protesters clash with police outside a US air base in the city of Adana, Turkey on Sunday (5/11). Turkish media reported police fired tear gas at thousands of protesters outside the Incirlik udder base. Protesters tried to cross the square to enter the base, according to the Karar newspaper and other media.
The protest at Incirlik, home of the US Air Force’s 39th Air Wing in Adana province, was the culmination of a convoy that departed on a 940-kilometer journey from Istanbul on Friday (3/11). Hundreds of vehicles arrived at Incirlik on Sunday afternoon and many people gathered near the base to listen to speeches.
Many protesters waved placards and Turkish and Palestinian flags.
The convoy and demonstration were organized by the IHH aid group, which Israel accuses of having ties to Hamas.
There have been many protests in support of Palestinians since Israel launched military operations in Gaza. Following demonstrations outside Israel’s diplomatic missions in Istanbul and Ankara, Tel Aviv withdrew its staff from Turkey.
The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 9,448, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have died in Israeli violence and attacks. The UN Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said 72 of its staff members had died in the war.
More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them in the Hamas attack on October 7 that started the fighting, and 242 people were taken hostage from Israel to Gaza by the militant group.
Around 1,100 people have left the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing since Wednesday (1/11) under an agreement between the United States, Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which brokered with Hamas. (lt/ka)