CENTER CITY (KYW Newsradio) — As part of a nationwide movement, a few hundred people in Philly joined other cities Sunday in what organizers called the “Not Another Bomb” rally.
They say all of the rallies have the same message: a call for an arms embargo and a ceasefire in Gaza aimed toward the Democratic Party and Vice President Kamala Harris.
Deborah Rose, who is with the Not Another Bomb Coalition, said as the Democratic National Convention is about to begin in Chicago, they want more from the Democratic Party.
“If they continue to demand us of their protection and their power, they rely on the swing state voters to continually hand them power every four years,” she said. “And if they continue to make these demands, then they should continue to listen to our demands, which is an arms embargo and a ceasefire in Gaza.”
Tammer Ibrahim is part of Reclaim Philadelphia, one of the many groups that participated in the rally and march.
“I want to see VP Harris and her campaign win in November and I think the best way to do that is to recognize a majority of Democratic voters want to see an end to the violence in Gaza and want to see an arms embargo on Israel after so much violence has been committed over the past 10 months,” he said.
The Gaza Health Ministry estimates that more than 40,000 people have been killed since the start of the Israel-Hamas War.
Sam Kuttab said some of his relatives died in Gaza.
“It’s tough. It’s tough and we need the recognition from our leaders to say no more killing, no more weapons,” he said. “Enough is enough.”
Across the globe, the U.S. is meeting with leaders in Israel to push for a ceasefire deal, as talks are expected to resume this week.
According to reports, the proposal calls for Hamas to release hostages abducted on Oct. 7, and for Israel to withdraw its forces and release Palestinian prisoners.
As for where Vice President Harris stands, The Associated Press reported that she has supported Biden’s negotiations for a ceasefire but rejected an arms embargo.