Hundreds of people gathered to express their opposition to the US president’s attendance at the ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Hundreds of pro-Palestinian demonstrators demonstrated against US President Donald Trump’s visit to Malaysia for the ASEAN summit.
Protesters gathered at Kuala Lumpur’s Independence Square and the city’s Ampang Park area on Sunday morning and evening, holding separate demonstrations against President Trump’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza.
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President Trump traveled to Kuala Lumpur to attend the 47th ASEAN Summit, where he oversaw the signing of a ceasefire agreement between Cambodia and Thailand and announced a number of trade agreements.
In Independence Square, demonstrators wearing keffiyehs chanted “Free, Free Palestine” as they braved the midday sun.
Asma Hanim Mahfoud said she traveled 300 kilometers (185 miles) from Malaysia’s northeastern state of Kelantan to participate in a protest and another demonstration outside the U.S. embassy on Friday.
“People with a conscience know that Trump is a perpetrator of genocide. Without him, Israel cannot kill all the children and people of Gaza,” she told Al Jazeera.
“It’s not rocket science.”
Mahfud was disappointed that the morning protest was moved by authorities from Ampang Park, near the venue of the ASEAN summit where protests were held earlier in the week.
Police said Sunday’s anti-Trump rally was expected to draw between 1,000 and 1,500 participants, Malaysia’s Bernama news agency reported.
Although turnout was much lower, it drew from a diverse cross-section of Malaysian society.
Socialist Party Malaysia leader Chew Chong Kai said he would take part in the rally to protest US foreign policy in the Middle East and elsewhere.
“This is a solidarity rally against US imperialism, solidarity with the Palestinian people and people all over the world who are victims of US imperialism,” Autumn told Al Jazeera.
Autumn also said it was disappointing that the protest had been moved from near the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center, where President Trump and other leaders had gathered for the summit.
Protesters then gathered in the evening at Ampang Park, the original protest venue, to demonstrate against the US president’s visit.
“We just want to make a point that we are against US policy, but unfortunately the police were very hostile to the protests and even blocked off the area where we were trying to protest,” Chu said.
Murshidah, a Kuala Lumpur resident who asked to be called by one name, said she and her husband have been participating in pro-Palestinian demonstrations since 2023.
Murshikhida said there was no need for protesters to take to the streets anymore after more than two years of war.
Israel and Hamas signed a ceasefire agreement earlier this month, which was also overseen by President Trump, but violence continues, with each side accusing the other of violating the ceasefire.
“Honestly, I don’t know why we’re still doing this,” she told Al Jazeera.
“This shouldn’t happen, but someone has to be their voice. They don’t have a voice, so we have to be their voice.”
