Cairo, 18 October 2023 (dpa/MIA) - Mass protests erupted in several Arab countries on Wednesday to express support for the Palestinians and denounce Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip.

Angered by the Israeli airstrikes on Gaza and a devastating blast at a hospital in the Strip, demonstrations were held for the second day in a row in some countries.

According to the Health Ministry in Gaza, hundreds of people were killed and injured in the blast at Al Ahli hospital in Gaza City on Tuesday.

Israel, which has been pounding Gaza with retaliatory airstrikes since Hamas militants launched an unprecedented attack on Israeli border communities on October 7, says a misguided missile by the Palestinian extremist organization Islamic Jihad was responsible for the blast, providing evidence to back up its claim.

In Tunisia, some 17,000 people gathered near the French embassy, an Interior Ministry spokesman said.

Protesters called for the expulsion of the French ambassador because of what they described as France's "bias" towards Israel.

Another demonstration took place outside the US embassy in Tunis.

Jordanians gathered near the Israeli embassy in Amman, with thousands expressing support for Gaza and calling for expelling the Israeli ambassador to Jordan.

Tight security was imposed in the area, according to Roya TV, keeping protesters at a distance from the embassy after demonstrators had attempted to storm it on Tuesday night.

In videos posted online, some protesters were chanting "People want to free Palestine."

Hundreds more gathered in another area in Amman chanting against "the Zionist entity" and also chanting "No embassy, no normalization".

In Egypt, protests were held in different cities nationwide, a rare sight in the North African country where authorities have for years cracked down on demonstrations.

University students held demonstrations in Cairo. Hundreds more took to the streets in the southern city of Luxor to denounce Israeli military escalation in Gaza.

Thousands demonstrated in Sinai's Al-Arish city, carrying Egyptian and Palestinian flags, witnesses told dpa.

Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, and Jordan followed by signing another treaty in 1994.

Many Arab governments condemned Israel for Tuesday's hospital deaths, including Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt, Morocco and Jordan.

Photo: dpa