VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – As people were clearing rubble and checking their homes for damage in Gaza last night in the aftermath of eight days of fighting, members of Metro Vancouver’s Palestinian community were protesting outside a synagogue in South Vancouver.

Protester Khaled Barakat hopes politicians in Ottawa were paying attention to the demonstration.

“We’re here to condemn the official Canadian position and say that Canada should stand with the side of justice,” says Barakat. “The people of Canada need to ask the Harper government [whether it] stands for justice and international law.”

One hundred and sixty-six people died in the eight days of fighting between Israel and Hamas, but a truce that was brokered by Egypt seems to be holding.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird says the conflict isn’t a complex issue. “We have to speak the truth about the situation. We have got an international terrorist organization, Hamas, that has sent more than a thousand rockets targeting civilian areas.”

He adds he’s cautiously optimistic a truce will hold.

The top cleric of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood isn’t impressed with the cease-fire brokered by President Mohammed Morsi. He’s urging holy war to liberate Palestinian territories.