The Venice Film Festival was the focus of a massive demonstration on Saturday (August 30) against Israeli war in Gaza.
At the biggest demonstration at the film festival to date, thousands of protesters marched towards the festival’s Palazzo del Cinema in Lido.
However, amidst the presence of strong police with helicopters flying overhead, protesters were prevented from accessing the festival’s main red carpet area.
The protest took place just before the world premiere of Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein starring Jacob Elordi, Mia Goss and Oscar Isaac, but it didn’t disrupt the red carpet.
The noisy but peaceful protests included local Venetians and several festival representatives. One attendee told the screen that he thought 2,000 people were on the march.
The protest was organized by political and grassroots organizations from Venice.
In a statement in advance, organizers said the Venice Film Festival should be “a space for denouncement of genocide, not an event isolated from reality, but an accomplice of the Western government and providing concrete support to the Palestinians.”
The rally began outside the main water bus station in Lido, heading down the island’s main boulevard towards the festival.
The march follows a small demonstration on the first day of the festival.
(TagStoTranslate)Festival (T)Israel (T)Palestine (T)Venice
