COLOMBO (Ma'an) -- Hundreds of people staged a demonstration in Sri Lanka on Friday to show solidarity with the people of Gaza, a Palestinian Authority diplomat said.

Anwar al-Agha, PA ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Republic of Maldives, told Ma'an Sunday that demonstrators had gathered in front of a municipality building in Colombo before marching through the center of the city.

Government officials, activists and representatives of various political parties joined the rally, al-Agha added.

The demonstrators carried banners denouncing Israel's recent assault on the coastal enclave and called on the international community to pressure Israel to end all aggression against the Gaza Strip.

Many protestors expressed support for the Palestinian bid to obtain non-member status at the United Nations and called for an independent Palestinian state.