Man Sets Arm on Fire During US March to Mark Gaza War Anniversary

The pro-Palestinian protest began and ended outside the White House in Washington, with demonstrators demanding an end to US aid to Israel - AFP
The pro-Palestinian protest began and ended outside the White House in Washington, with demonstrators demanding an end to US aid to Israel - AFP
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Man Sets Arm on Fire During US March to Mark Gaza War Anniversary

The pro-Palestinian protest began and ended outside the White House in Washington, with demonstrators demanding an end to US aid to Israel - AFP
The pro-Palestinian protest began and ended outside the White House in Washington, with demonstrators demanding an end to US aid to Israel - AFP

Thousands marched in US cities from Washington to Los Angeles on Saturday, demanding an immediate ceasefire as the war in Gaza nears the one-year mark, with a man attempting to self-immolate in protest.

In New York, pro-Palestine demonstrators walked in the city's Midtown neighbourhood, waving flags and holding signs.

"The US government has really shown what side of history it is on," Zaid Khatib, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement, told AFP.

"The US government has performed and co-signed the most evil atrocities that we've seen of this century."

Almost two hours into the protest, a man approached the demonstration site and attempted to set himself on fire, AFP journalists saw.

He succeeded in lighting his left arm ablaze before bystanders and police rushed to his aid, dousing him with water and extinguishing the flames using their keffiyehs, traditional Palestinian scarves.

"I'm a journalist and we neglect it, we spread the misinformation," he shouted, in between screams of pain as the fire on his arm was put out.

Police said the man was being treated for "non-life threatening injuries."

Protesters waved Palestinian and Lebanese flags, among others, with many holding up signs and chanting in unison to demonstrate solidarity with the Palestinian cause.

In New York, thousands marched in the city's famed Times Square neighborhood, some carrying pictures of people killed by Israel's military offensive in Gaza, which has left much of the territory in rubble.

Among those marching was Cornel West, a prominent rights activist and an independent candidate running in the US presidential election.

"I'm here to forever be in solidarity with people undergoing a vicious genocide," he told AFP. "Dealing with ethnic cleansing it's getting worse, it's been a whole year now. You know, we got to keep fighting."

The United States is one of Israel's closest allies, providing billions in military assistance -- a subject that protesters in both cities focused on.

Police at the protest in Washington maintained a perimeter around the demonstration

"As an American we're tired of our tax money going to Israel to bomb kids in Palestine and then Lebanon," said Daniel Perez, a New York resident.

Protesters also took to the street in Los Angeles, many holding signs calling for an end to "genocide" in Gaza.

In Washington, protesters' cries for "justice" and "peace" reverberated off office buildings in downtown, with the crowd animated by a mix of righteous anger and raucous solidarity.

Laila, an American of Palestinian and Lebanese descent, told AFP the past year had left her disillusioned with her country's leaders -- so much so that she was unlikely to vote in November.

"It all disgusts me now," she said. "It's all a lie."



Harris, Trump End Historic Campaigns with Final Pitch to Voters

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) speaks during a campaign rally on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2024, and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) speaks during a campaign rally at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) speaks during a campaign rally on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2024, and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) speaks during a campaign rally at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
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Harris, Trump End Historic Campaigns with Final Pitch to Voters

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) speaks during a campaign rally on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2024, and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) speaks during a campaign rally at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 5, 2024. (AFP)
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (L) speaks during a campaign rally on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2024, and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (R) speaks during a campaign rally at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan on November 5, 2024. (AFP)

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump made their final case Monday in the hours before Election Day, when voters will either choose America's first woman president or hand the Republican an unprecedented comeback likely to rattle the world.

With polls showing a dead heat, Trump promised to lead the United States to "new heights of glory" while Harris said the "momentum is on our side," as the rivals held their last rallies of the 2024 race in crucial battleground states.

The Democratic vice president finished on a high note in Philadelphia in the must-win state of Pennsylvania, with a rally on the steps immortalized by the boxing movie "Rocky."

"This could be one of the closest races in history -- every single vote matters," said Harris, who was joined by celebrities including Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey.

She also referenced the film, telling thousands of supporters that "here at these famous steps" she was paying "tribute to those who start as the underdog and climb to victory."

Harris, 60, has repeatedly said she is the underdog, having only joined the race three months ago after President Joe Biden dropped out. But she insisted she would win.

Former president Trump brought several family members -- with the conspicuous absence of his wife Melania -- up on stage at his closing rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

There, as in an earlier swing through North Carolina and Pennsylvania, his speech bristled with dark rhetoric.

"With your vote tomorrow, we can fix every single problem our country faces and lead America -- indeed, the world -- to new heights of glory," he told the crowd, as the clocks ticked over into Tuesday.

- 'Show up' -

Their final pitches reflected the critical importance that turnout is likely to play in a nail-biting race.

Both sides say they are encouraged by early turnout, with more than 82 million people having cast early ballots -- but they now need to mobilize supporters on Election Day itself.

A charged-up Trump said his supporters can "put ourselves in a position to win, which we can do very easily if we show up."

Harris said, "We need everyone to vote in Pennsylvania and you will decide the outcome."

Polls open on the East Coast at 6:00 am (1100 GMT) Tuesday -- although in the tiny New Hampshire hamlet of Dixville Notch they opened at the stroke of midnight, recording three votes for Trump and three for Harris.

In the final days, the Republican and Democrat have delivered sharply contrasting messages.

Speaking earlier in Reading, Pennsylvania, Trump pursued his apocalyptic vision of a United States in decline and overwhelmed by illegal immigrants, whom he described as "savages" and "animals."

Harris, meanwhile, hammered home her opposition to Trump-backed abortion bans across the United States -- one of her key vote-winning positions.

But she also took an upbeat, centrist note, calling for a "fresh start" after nearly a decade of Trump dominating US political discourse.

- High tension -

At 78, Trump is the oldest major party nominee ever to run for US president.

But despite being tarred with criminal convictions and the scandal of his supporters' violent attack on Congress four years ago, when he refused to accept the results of the 2020 election, he goes into Election Day with major advantages.

Trump has pressed home on voter concerns about the economy and illegal migration while his harsh rhetoric is catnip to his right-wing base.

His message struck home for first-time voter Ethan Wells, a 19-year-old restaurant cook in Michigan.

Biden "let a lot of illegals in, and they've been murdering and raping our own people," he told AFP. "When Trump was president, nobody messed with America."

Harris has had to build an entire campaign in three months but she has quickly galvanized the Democratic Party and stirred excitement among young voters and women.

"Tomorrow, we will elect the first female president," Luke Little, a 24-year-old server, said in Philadelphia.

The world is anxiously watching as the outcome will have major implications for conflicts in the Middle East and Russia's war in Ukraine, and for tackling climate change, which Trump calls a hoax.

The most immediate fear is that US democracy will be tested if Trump loses but refuses to accept defeat like he did four years ago, when his supporters stormed the US Capitol.

With Trump having narrowly survived an assassination attempt in July and police foiling a second alleged plot, the fears of violence are very real.

In Washington, growing numbers of businesses and office buildings are being boarded up in case of unrest.