Hundreds flood Burnaby’s Metrotown Mall to call for a ceasefire in Gaza

Demonstrators flooded Burnaby’s Metropolis at Metrotown mall Saturday to call for an end to the Israel-Hamas war.

The demonstrators met in Burnaby Civic Square at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, according to posts by the Canada Palestine Association, before inundating the mall, and later spilling out onto the streets. A bicycle rally also took place.

Videos on social media show hundreds of people holding flags and signs, while chanting.

Chants such as “End the occupation now”, “No more genocide”, and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” were repeated as the demonstrators walked and rode escalators in the mall.

Organizing parties included the Healthcare Workers Alliance for Palestine, the Canada Palestine Association and the Palestine Youth Movement.

According to posts on social media, the rally was held in solidarity with healthcare workers of Gaza.

This comes after three hostages, all in their twenties, were killed Friday by Israeli troops in the Gaza City area of Shijaiyah, where troops are engaged in fighting with Hamas. The three people had been among more than 240 hostages taken during an attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, in which around 1,200 people were killed, mostly civilians.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry in Gaza says more than 19,400 Palestinians have been killed since Israel declared war on Hamas. The figure does not differentiate between civilian and combatant deaths.

-With files from the Associated Press

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to include the number of deaths reported by the Health Ministry in Gaza.