PARIS (JTA) — European foreign ministers called for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner relayed the message to the French television network TF1 following an emergency meeting of ministers in Paris on Tuesday night. Kouchner said the European Union, which is led by France until next year, also called for full "humanitarian access" to the region.
Police said 3,500 demonstrators marched through Paris on Tuesday night to denounce the Israeli operation in Gaza. Organizers put the number at 5,000. Protesters shouted slogans such as, "Israel Assassin," and "Halt to the genocide of the Palestinian people," according to a French press agency.
Protest organizers, which include groups such as the Movement Against Racism and for Friendship Between People and Generation Palestine, plan to continue distributing fliers and meeting at a booth set up in the center of Paris to help mobilize pro-Palestinian activists. The organizations also plan to continue protest marches this week, their Web sites said.
