Hundreds rally for Gaza in Senegal in rare West Africa protest

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of Senegal’s capital, Dakar, on Sunday in protest of Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza, local media reported.

The 2.5 kilometre march, organised by the Senegal Alliance for the Palestinian Cause, saw politicians, civil society organisations, religious leaders, and activists, carry Palestinian, Sudanese, Lebanese and Congolese flags and chant slogans including "Down with Israel", "Netanyahu is a terrorist", and "Down with the United States".

Among the keynote speakers was Ayib Daffé, a member of parliament from the Pastef party, who delivered a speech on behalf of President Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s government.

"We call for an end to the illegal occupation, respect for international law, and the implementation of United Nations resolutions establishing a free, viable, and autonomous Palestinian state," Daffé said.

"International law is not optional. If powerful nations like the United States continue to ignore UN resolutions and defy international courts, they endanger the entire global order."

"We came to show our solidarity with our brothers in Gaza. There is nothing we can do at this stage, we must at least raise our voice," one demonstrator,  Awa Ndiaye, told local media. 

According to some reports in local media, thousands of people attended the match, draped in Keffiyehs which have become a symbol of Palestinian solidairty. 

The protest follows Israel’s resumption of airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on 18 March, in breach of a ceasefire agreement signed in January. Israel’s bombardment has killed more than 61,700 Palestinians, sparking protests in cities worldwide, including Jakarta, Cape Town, London, and now Dakar.

Sunday’s demonstration came just days after Senegal marked its Independence Day on 4 April, with protesters drawing parallels between Senegal’s anti-colonial legacy and Israel’s illegal occupation in Palestine.

While Senegal maintains official diplomatic relations with Israel, restored in 1995 after a two-decade suspension, popular and parliamentary sentiment in the West African nation has remained critical of Israel’s military actions in Gaza.

In January, Senegal took part in the Hague Group, which "co-ordinated legal, economic, and diplomatic measures" aimed at holding Israel accountable for its violations of international law, amid mounting threats against the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In 2016, as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, Senegal co-sponsored and voted for Resolution 2334, which condemned Israeli settlement construction in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The move drew swift diplomatic backlash from Israel, including the temporary suspension of aid and the recall of its ambassador from Dakar.

Despite these diplomatic tensions, Senegal chaired the UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for decades and has hosted numerous solidarity events and conferences on Palestinian rights.

Senegal’s majority-Muslim population has also remained vocal on the issue, with civil society and religious groups regularly organising rallies and campaigns in support of Gaza and the broader Palestinian struggle.