Pro-Palestine demonstrators rally outside all entrances to State Department

A group of protesters began a demonstration at all the entrances to the US State Department building in Washington on Thursday evening, where they demanded a ceasefire and an end to Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories.

"They sent the staffers to a different side so they do not see us outside calling them out for their complicity in genocide. So we have blocked up every single exit and we will continue to show up," said an organiser of the protest, which was put together by the Palestinian Youth Movement.

Protesters booed individuals as they left the State Department, however, one group of people ended up joining the demonstration.

One college student, who asked to remain anonymous, said she was attending a Diwali celebration at the State Department, and left to attend the rally. She was wearing a Palestinian keffiyeh while she was inside the building, and said that she could hear the chants going on inside.

"I have been involved with a lot of the actions around Palestine happening now, I care deeply about the issue," the student said.

"I wore my keffiyeh, with my sari which was a gift from my grandmother's older sister who was a refugee during the time of partition in South Asia. Wearing the keffiyeh with this sari had great significance for me since it symbolises the interconnected struggle between the people of South Asia and the people in Gaza right now."