Indianapolis protests call for ceasefire in Gaza, end to U.S. aid to Israel

Hundreds of protesters gathered in downtown Indianapolis on two nights this weekend to call for a ceasefire and raise awareness of the mounting death toll in Gaza, as Israeli airstrikes enter a third week this Monday. The protests were peaceful, and there were no counterprotesters. 

At the Sunday rally, organized by local mosques and the Butler University group Students for Justice in Palestine, more than a hundred people — including activists and families with children — stood on the steps of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument and chanted in support of Palestine. 

"We want the siege on Gaza to end now. That means, allow humanitarian aid, electricity, food, water, and just health,” said Mohammad, who did not give WFYI his last name citing safety concerns. He is a Fishers resident whose parents are from Gaza. “Our second demand is to end all U.S. aid to Israel. We cannot allow ourselves to continuously be complicit with our tax dollars towards a war against our people."

Many called on the United States and other nations to condemn the airstrikes and blockade.

“I want to see an acknowledgement from the U.S. government — from most Western governments — that what is happening over there is collective punishment, that it is a war crime,” said Sarah Neda, an Indianapolis college student who is Egyptian American. 

Similar calls were voiced Friday, many with a look toward resolution.

“We know that a ceasefire is not the end goal,” Malkah Bird, Indiana chapter leader for Jewish Voice for Peace, told protesters Friday. “It's the first step. A ceasefire will allow Gazans to dig out from under the rubble. It will allow Gazans to care for their children, their wounded, their sick. It will allow Gazans to bury their dead.”

The Friday event was organized by the Indiana University Purdue University in Indianapolis’ Middle Eastern Student Association and the IUPUI United Nations Children’s Fund student group. Members from the Indiana chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace also participated. 

In that rally, also on Monument Circle, more than a hundred people protested peacefully and marched around the block as they held signs and chanted “Israel, Israel you can’t hide. You’re committing genocide” and “Long live Palestine.” 

Protesters also observed a minute of silence for those killed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as pictures of children who have died were placed on the steps of the monument. 

This weekend’s protests were the latest in Indianapolis since the war started, after Hamas militants terrorized Israelis including men, women and children on Oct. 7. Hamas killed more than 1,400 people, wounding many others and kidnapping more than 200 people in Southern Israel, including U.S. citizens. 

In response to that terror attack, Israel cut the supply of food, water and fuel in Gaza leading to widespread shortages and an intensifying humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations and other groups. 

The Associated Press reported Friday that surgeons at a Gaza hospital are using their cell phone flashlights to perform procedures, as electricity and fuel reserves run low. 

NPR reported more than 4,650 people have been killed in Gaza in the past two weeks, including more than 1,870 children, and at least 74 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. 

There is also a mounting displacement crisis, as about a million Palestinians — roughly half of Gaza's population — have now fled their homes to seek shelter elsewhere inside Gaza. With borders closed, few have been able to leave the territory.

In a recent statement, the Secretary-General of the United Nations said that the “abhorrent” attack by Hamas does not excuse this “collective punishment.” He called for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and demanded that Hamas release the hostages.

The Israeli government says that the airstrikes aim to destroy Hamas and restore Israel’s sense of security. You can read more reporting here from NPR on perspectives of loved ones of Hamas attack victims. 

The Indianapolis protests are part of a larger call, across the U.S., Europe and the Middle East, for a ceasefire. You can read here about an earlier Indianapolis protest where both pro-Israel and pro-Palestine voices participated.

Contact WFYI reporter Alex Li at ali@wfyi.org.

Contact WFYI reporter Dylan Peers McCoy at dmccoy@wfyi.org.