condemning Israel’s genocide in Gaza and rejecting claims that a ceasefire has brought meaningful relief. Protesters, many waving Palestinian and Turkish flags, converged on the city’s historic Galata Bridge on Thursday despite freezing temperatures. The march, organised by civil society groups under the National Will Platform alongside Turkish football clubs, rallied under the slogan: “We won’t remain silent, we won’t forget Palestine.” More than 400 civil society organisations joined the mobilisation, underscoring the scale of public anger at Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. Several major football clubs urged their supporters to attend, helping turn the rally into one of the largest pro-Palestine demonstrations Turkiye has seen since Israel’s war began. Galatasaray football club chair Dursun Ozbek described Israel’s actions as a moral reckoning for the world. “We will not get used to this silence,” Ozbek said in a video message shared on X. “Standing shoulder to shoulder against oppression, we come together on the same side for humanity.”

Sinem Koseoglu, Al Jazeera’s Turkiye correspondent, reported from the Galata Bridge that Palestine remains a point of national consensus. She said the issue cuts across political lines, uniting supporters of the governing AK Party with voters from major opposition parties. “Today people are trying to show their support on the very first day of the new year,” Koseoglu said, as crowds packed the bridge and surrounding streets. Police sources and the Anadolu state news agency said about 500,000 people took part in the march. The rally included speeches and a performance by Lebanese-born singer Maher Zain, who sang “Free Palestine” to a sea of raised flags. (Aljazeera)