Members of Winnipeg's Palestinian community, supporters march downtown Saturday

More than 200 members of Winnipeg's Palestinian community and supporters marched from city hall to Portage and Main Saturday. 

The march came one day after the temporary truce between Israel and Hamas ended.

The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 193 Palestinians had been killed since the truce ended, adding to the more than 15,000 Palestinians killed since the start of the war.

"We're here just to stand up for what is right.… Every person that has moral standards, you should stand up and fight for what's right," said Hussein Chokr, who is Lebanese and recently came to Winnipeg.

"We're always here to preach for peace. We're against the killing of anyone and everyone, we do not want any bloodshed."

The latest conflict between Israel and Hamas is nearly two months old. It was sparked when Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians, with an estimated 240 people taken hostage. 

The two sides had agreed to a temporary truce of at least four days, which saw the exchange of hostages taken in the Oct. 7 attack for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. That truce was renewed twice, lasting a total of seven days, before ending Friday. 

The effects of the ongoing war are being felt in the community, Chokr said. 

"Stress is happening to people in Winnipeg [and] hate towards people who stand with Palestine," he said. "We were called terrorists multiple times and it's very unfortunate."

Harold Shuster of Independent Jewish Voices Winnipeg said he's devastated the fighting is continuing. 

"We need to let people know there are many Jewish voices and many of them are not happy with what's going on and many of them are in solidarity with Palestinians."

Some of the many chants during Saturday's march included, "Free, free Palestine," "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," and "We are not antisemitic, U of M you're so pathetic," and also called Fort Whyte MLA Obby Khan pathetic. 

The chant came after Khan and Selkrik MLA Richard Perchotte apologized Friday for advocating on behalf of a nursing student who was suspended by the University of Manitoba after making social media posts critical of Israel's actions in its war against Hamas.

During a speech Saturday, Chokr called for more mental health organizations to stand with Palestinians. He also said he knows people are getting tired and burned out, but called for pro-Palestinian supporters in Winnipeg to continue making their voices heard. 

"All we ask for is peace and love within all communities, that's all," said Chokr.