The largest demonstration in France in solidarity with Palestine since the outbreak of war between Hamas and Israel took place on the afternoon of Sunday, October 22, in Paris. According to La France Insoumise (LFI, hard left) MP Aurélie Trouvé, quoted by Agence France-Presse (AFP), the organizers counted some 30,000 participants, with the police prefecture reporting 15,000 demonstrators, unprecedented figures for such a gathering since the summer 2014 war. No major incidents were reported. Law enforcement officers made 10 arrests, including for anti-Semitic remarks and tagging the statue of Marianne at the Place de la République, according to the prefecture.

The rally was organized by the Collectif National pour une Paix Juste et Durable entre Palestiniens et Israéliens (National Collective for a Just and Lasting Peace Between Palestinians and Israelis), which brings together some 40 organizations, including the hardline CGT union, FSU (an education union), LFI, Nouveau Parti Anticapitaliste (New Anti-Capitalist Party), Union Syndicale Solidaires (a group of trade unions), Association France Palestine Solidarité (France Palestine Solidarity Association), Mouvement Contre le Racisme et pour l'Amitié entre les Peuples (Movement Against Racism and for Friendship Between Peoples), Collectif des Musulmans de France (French Muslim Collective) and Union Juive Française pour la Paix (French Jewish Union for Peace). On a banner unfurled at the foot of the statue Place de la République, the collective called for an "immediate ceasefire" and an end to the "massacre in Gaza."

A demonstration was organized on October 19, at the same location, but the prefecture banned it due to instructions issued by Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. The previous day, the Conseil d'Etat (France's highest administrative court), after an appeal filed by the Comité Action Palestine (Palestine Action Committee), ruled that pro-Palestinian demonstrations could not be banned by a blanket order from the minister of the interior and should be subject to the decision of prefects on a case-by-case basis. Subsequently, the Paris Administrative Court, hearing a request against the ban, authorized Thursday's rally in the late afternoon, prompting the police to lift the ban at 7 pm. In addition to the fact that the demonstration was taking place during the week, the ban, followed by a last-minute authorization, deterred many people from attending.

This was not the case on Sunday, when, for the first time, the rally was authorized. Two-thirds of the Place de la République was packed with demonstrators from all walks of life: Islamists and left-wing activists, women in headscarves and bare-armed women, all stood next to each other in a crowd whose sole theme was the defense of Palestine and the Palestinians. The crowd chanted: "Israel assassin, Macron accomplice"; "We are all Palestinians"; "Children of Gaza, children of Palestine, it's humanity that's being murdered"; and "Gaza, Gaza, Paris is with you."

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