The rally drew a bigger crowd than the one held at Dataran Merdeka this morning, which was attended by about 100 people, including Amanah’s international bureau chairman, Raja Kamarul Bahrin Shah Raja Ahmad, and activist and former PKR vice-president Tian Chua.
This evening, participants began assembling at the Ampang Park area at 5pm and chanted pro-Palestinian slogans, including “Hidup Palestin, hidup Gaza, hidup rakyat!” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!”, while waving Palestinian flags and hand-made banners.
Many held placards reading “Smash genocide,” “Smash capitalism,” “Smash the patriarchy,” “Don’t side with genocide,” and “Smash imperialism”.
The protesters also destroyed caricatures of the US president and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Some in the crowd also voiced solidarity with workers and regional struggles, shouting “Hidup Grab driver, hidup Grab rider,” and “Hidup Papua, hidup Gaza”.
The demonstration wound down about two hours later.
Kuala Lumpur police mounted a heavy presence, and reported that the rally ended peacefully without incident. City police chief Fadil Marsus later thanked the organisers for keeping the crowd under control and abiding by police instructions.
The organisers, Sekretariat Bantah Trump and Gegar (Gabungan Rakyat Anti-Imperialist), had warned participants to assemble early and to stay in nearby cafes and shopping centres, citing increased security and the risk of arrests.
In a statement circulated at the rally, the secretariat urged the government to end the normalisation of ties with the US and Israel, and block companies and institutions that supported Israel’s actions.
Activist-lawyer Fadiah Nadwa Fikri accused Malaysia of having become “USA’s lap dogs” by welcoming Trump, who arrived this morning to attend the Asean summit and related meetings.
“What we saw this morning, how can you say that it is pro-Palestine? What we are seeing is the true neo-colonialist nature of the government. We have become USA’s lap dog,” she said.
The rally follows similar demonstrations across the city over the past three days, including about 700 people outside the US embassy on Friday.