Today marks the first "All Out for Palestine" rally of 2025.
People will march from the Museum Reserve to the Octagon in silence to protest against the conflict in Gaza.
Israel’s assault on Gaza followed an attack on southern Israel in October 2023 by Hamas fighters in which 1200 people were killed and more than 250 taken as hostages, Israeli says.
Palestinian health officials report more than 46,000 people have been killed since the war began.
Most of the territory’s people have been displaced multiple times and face acute shortages of food and medicine, humanitarian agencies say.
Rally organiser and Palestinian-New Zealander Rinad Tamimi, of Dunedin, said after over a year of weekly rallies, she was most proud of the relationships which had formed between people.
"To be quite honest, when we had the very first rally ... I would not have expected to have built this massive community."
"The support and the solidarity we’ve felt and gotten has been really good — it’s something I’m really proud of."
Mrs Tamimi said the rallies had informed people about the conflict and encouraged people to learn more about the Middle Eastern and Palestinian culture and language.
There had been the occasional person who had been unhappy to see the rallies — "just some random yelling when we were rallying", she said.
"We are just literally walking out in the streets.
"Others are losing their lives as we speak."
Mrs Tamimi said the rally needed to continue to put pressure on those in power.
"The first, biggest thing we’re really wanting to achieve is to raise more awareness, hoping that that would lead to a permanent ceasefire ... to end the killing."
The New Zealand government needed to be more aware of how much they could help, she said.
"For example, we’re still pleading for the humanitarian visas, for the government to recognise Palestine," she said.
"It should just be focusing on a ceasefire and then recognising Palestine as a whole."
Since December, the rallies had been held monthly instead of weekly, so activists could work "smarter, not harder", Mrs Tamimi said.
