Gaza Crisis Dominates Mexico's Annual 1968 Massacre Commemoration: Palestinian Solidarity Takes Center Stage

A demonstrator displays the Palestinian flag during Mexico's yearly commemoration march for the 1968 massacre.

Thursday's annual march commemorating the 1968 student massacre in Mexico City was overshadowed by widespread calls to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, taking place thousands of miles away.

The October 2 march, traditionally used to remember both the historical massacre and Mexico's thousands of disappeared citizens along with other abuses of authority, was this year dominated by Palestinian flags and signs urging the cessation of Israel's military operations in Gaza.

"We experience empathy not just for our own people, for whom our grandparents sacrificed their lives, but for all individuals worldwide who are enduring what we once experienced," explained Edgar Lopez, a 23-year-old economics student who participated in the march with a Palestinian flag draped over his shoulders.

Demonstrators marched from Tlatelolco plaza, where Mexican troops attacked students in 1968 as they demanded an end to militarization and greater freedoms, resulting in an unconfirmed death toll estimated in the hundreds, to the capital's central plaza.

While the majority of participants marched peacefully, certain groups vandalized storefronts and hurled objects, including Molotov cocktails, at the hundreds of police officers guarding the National Palace.

Officials in Mexico City estimated approximately 10,000 people joined the march, with authorities noting around 350 masked individuals exhibiting aggressive behavior.

AP journalists witnessed at least three fellow journalists being attacked by both police and protesters, as well as a police officer being cornered and assaulted by demonstrators.

Local media reported at least six police officers were injured, though authorities did not immediately verify this figure.

A smaller impromptu protest had erupted in the capital the previous evening following Israel's detention of members aboard a flotilla transporting humanitarian aid, which included six Mexican citizens.

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum announced earlier Thursday that her administration had demanded the immediate repatriation of these detained Mexican nationals.