Thousands attend pro-Palestinian march in Paris

Thousands of protesters marched Saturday in Paris in a show of support for Gaza Palestinians, though police cut the event short before it reached its intended destination, the Israeli embassy. The march was the third major pro-Palestinian protest in the French capital in as many weeks. It appeared largely unmarred by the kinds of violence - like the burning of cars and smashing of windows - that hit the previous demonstrations. Paris police officials said 2,600 people took part in Saturday's march. The protest's organizers, EuroPalestine, said 18,000 people had turned out. A separate protest Saturday in eastern Paris drew some 450 people, the police said. Demonstrators held a banner reading "Stop the Franco-Israeli collaboration" and brandished Palestinian flags to protest Israel's offensive against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.