Protests around St. Louis region continue a month after Israel-Hamas war begins

Nearly a month after the Israel-Hamas war began, St. Louis-area events supporting Palestinians and Israelis killed or missing in the fighting continue to draw scores of demonstrators and prompt public outcry.

At the most recent of these gatherings, early Monday, about 75 Palestinian supporters rallied in St. Charles to block entrances at a Boeing manufacturing plant that produces weapons the U.S. government has sold to Israel’s military. On Friday, supporters of Israel met in Clayton to emphasize the human toll the nation's people have suffered.

The conflict reached a gruesome milestone this week. Gaza's Ministry of Health says the Israel Defense Forces have killed more than 10,000 people in the Gaza Strip,, with recent ground attacks and daily bombardments since Oct. 7. That's when Hamas militants attacked several communities in Israel near its border with Gaza, killing 1,400 people and taking 240 hostages.

The scores of civilian deaths have prompted international calls for a cease-fire and locally spurred demonstrators to join public demonstrations.

"What is happening right now in Palestine is not OK," said Mahreen Ansari, a demonstrator from Kansas City, outside the manufacturing plant. "We are trying to prevent workers from going in and making literal bombs that are being used to bomb hospitals, to kill children, to displace and to end bloodlines.”