A pro-Palestinian activist briefly interrupted the Cricket World Cup final in India on Sunday, managing to barge onto the field and hugging superstar Indian batsman Virat Kohli. Wearing a mask in the colors of the Palestinian flag and a t-shirt with the slogan “Stop bombing Palestine”, the young activist ran onto the field of the gigantic 132,000-seat stadium in Ahmedabad (west). He was escorted off the field by security officers and the match quickly resumed. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to attend the final between his country and Australia with Australian Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.
The war between Israel and Hamas, triggered by the bloody attack of the Palestinian Islamist movement on October 7 on Israeli soil, entered its 44th day on Sunday. According to the latest report from the Hamas government, 12,300 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardments on the Gaza Strip since the start of the war, including more than 5,000 children and 3,300 women. The Hamas attack left 1,200 dead, mostly civilians killed on October 7, according to Israeli authorities. India, which has long advocated for the creation of an independent Palestinian state, condemned the Hamas attacks and sent aid to Egypt for Palestinian civilians.
