Amsterdam turns red as 200,000 march demanding Dutch action on Gaza

Amsterdam got loud on Sunday. More than 200,000 people packed the streets for a protest organizers called the Red Line, with crowds dressed in red and marching down a normally traffic-clogged thoroughfare that was shut down for the day. Amnesty International's Dutch branch, one of the groups behind the event, put the turnout above 200,000.

The demands were blunt: tighter trade restrictions on Israel and a full stop to arms sales. Marchers chanted for a free Palestine as they moved through the city, with the call echoing up and down the route from a man at a bus stop armed with a loudspeaker.

Among the crowd was Mike van Dongen, who said the situation in Gaza is inhumane and accused Dutch authorities of stalling. In his view, they are doing nothing. He said they do not dare take any serious steps.

The march lands against a staggering toll. Al Jazeera reports at least 74,000 Palestinians, including 21,000 children, have been killed since October 2023. A ceasefire took effect on October 10, but strikes and killings have continued on an almost daily basis, according to the outlet.

The Netherlands and Israel have been locked in a souring relationship over the war. The Dutch foreign minister resigned after failing to win fresh sanctions against Israel, and a new minority coalition that took power in February brought in an import ban on products from Israeli settlements, which most of the international community and the Dutch government consider illegal. That ban triggered a diplomatic spat.

Prime Minister Rob Jetten skipped Sunday's march but defended his record at his weekly news conference on Friday, saying his government does what it can every day and every week to ease the terrible situation. He added that his administration is applying greater political and diplomatic pressure on Israel to honor its commitments on Gaza. He joined a march last year; this time he stayed away.