More than a hundred people marched in Bridport to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

Around 120 people assembled for a rally in The Borough Gardens in Bridport, followed by a march through town.

The Bridport protest was one of scores of protests in towns and cities across the UK on the National Day Of Action called by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

The rally in the gardens began with songs by the choir Dorset Red, followed by speakers including Cllr Sarah Carney, trade unionists, campaigners, and a school student.

Cllr Sarah Carney told the rally: "We're all here, as are people all over the world, to explain to the leaders of every country that killing people isn't going to resolve anything. They'll just carry on the killing, until somebody stands up and says 'We're going to stop selling you arms''".

John Burbidge, Chair of Tolpuddle of Unite the union's Agriculture and Transport branch, said: “This government and the opposition need to call for an immediate ceasefire. To stop arming Israel. The Palestinians have lived as refugees for decades. This is an outrage to the world. This is genocide. It has to stop.”

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Marchers walked through Bridport town centreMarchers walked through Bridport town centre (Image: Palestine Solidarity Campaign Dorset)

Rob Ferguson, Secretary of the Dorset Palestine Solidarity Campaign told the rally that his mother, a Jewish refugee from Hungary in the 1930s had lost her sister and family members in the Holocaust. His paternal grandparents had fled the pogroms of Jews in the Russian empire and settled in Britain. He said: "For myself, the lesson of history, my own family history, is that you always stand with the oppressed, regardless of race, religion, nationality or background. Today that means standing with Gaza and Palestine".

After the rally, the protest marched through the centre of Bridport, led by local school students, stopping at Buckydoo Square to lay out children's shoes in memory of the child victims of Israel's attacks on Gaza.

Bridport and Lyme Regis News: Shoes were laid out in memory of the children who have diedShoes were laid out in memory of the children who have died (Image: Palestine Solidarity Campaign Dorset)

The event, which was on Saturday, February 10, was organised by the Dorset Palestine Solidarity Campaign. It is organising a coach to the ninth National March against the war on Gaza on Saturday, February 17, as part of a global day of action and protest. Ticket enquiries to dorsetpsc1@gmail.com