On Saturday, September 27, 2025, tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in Berlin to express solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. According to police estimates, approximately 50,000 people participated in the march through the city’s downtown, carrying placards and shouting slogans such as "free, free Palestine." The protesters called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war and highlighted the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.
The demonstration was significant enough that around 1,800 law enforcement officers were deployed to ensure order during the event. The participants demanded a halt to German arms exports to Israel and urged for European Union sanctions against the country. German news agency dpa reported these demands as major focal points of the protest. Despite these calls for sanctions, Chancellor Friedrich Merz had previously stated that Germany would not authorize any military equipment exports to Israel that could be utilized in Gaza "until further notice," although the government has shown reluctance towards broader sanctions against Israel.
Germany has traditionally maintained a strong pro-Israel stance, shaped significantly by its historical responsibility for the Holocaust. This historical context has influenced its postwar foreign policy, primarily focused on ensuring Israel's security and combating antisemitism throughout Europe.
Amid the larger protest, a separate rally took place where around 100 individuals voiced their support for Israel and condemned all forms of antisemitism. Reports from German public broadcaster RBB indicated that there were isolated confrontations as both protest groups came into proximity during the events. Details on whether the clashes involved different protestors or police trying to manage the crowds were not immediately clear.
In additional demonstrations elsewhere, several thousand people protested in Düsseldorf with the slogan “we will not forget Gaza — freedom for Palestine and all oppressed peoples.” In Geneva, approximately 6,000 individuals also rallied for an end to the conflict. Similar protests against the violence in Gaza have occurred in various European cities over the past weeks.
The violence in Gaza was ignited by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, where militants killed around 1,200 individuals, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people. Currently, it is believed that 48 hostages remain in Gaza, with Israel considering that 20 of them are still alive.
In retaliation, Israel's military campaign over the following 23 months has reportedly resulted in the deaths of more than 65,100 people in Gaza, based on figures from the Gaza Health Ministry. This military action has led to extensive destruction across the Palestinian territory, displacing about 90% of its population and triggering a severe humanitarian crisis, with experts indicating that Gaza City is facing a famine.
The casualty figures provided by the Gaza Health Ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, are seen by United Nations agencies and many independent experts as the most reliable wartime estimates. However, these numbers do not distinguish between civilian and combatant fatalities, adding complexity to the ongoing discourse surrounding the humanitarian implications of the conflict.
