Protesters, Fewer in Number, Change Focus

Crowds in the United States and abroad protested the Iraq war Saturday, though in smaller numbers than before and with a different goal: bringing American troops home.

In Washington, 10 blocks from an antiwar demonstration, supporters of the war effort drew thousands to their own rally.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators marched in the capital during protests in January and March. On Saturday, a few thousand people gathered a few blocks from the White House for speeches and a march calling on U.S. troops to leave Iraq.

“We’re not the police officers of the world,” said Alissa Johnson, 24, a student from Boston. “It’s not up to us to go in and involve ourselves in everything, especially through force.”

Near the antiwar protest site, a similar number gathered, waving American flags and intermittently chanting “USA! USA!”

“They should stay as long as required to help out the Iraqi people,” said Rimma Dean, 42, from Olney, Md. “The Iraqi people need our support.”

Among speakers were former Republican Sen. Fred Thompson, now a television actor; actor Ron Silver; and former Reagan administration official Linda Chavez. Organizers read the names of the U.S. troops killed in Iraq.

The turnout of protesters also was modest in Los Angeles, San Francisco and other U.S. cities.

Antiwar demonstrations in other nations Saturday also were not on the scale of past protests, such as the February march in London that drew up to 2 million people.

This time, police said, 20,000 demonstrators marched in London. Many held placards demanding “No occupation of Iraq.”

Separately, Iraqi exiles held an annual meeting to remember family members imprisoned under President Saddam Hussein.

The number of demonstrators were down to several thousand in Montreal, the heart of Canada’s antiwar sentiment, and other Canadian cities.

In Berlin, about 12,000 people gathered for a rally near the Brandenburg Gate. About 50,000 marched in Rome, and a Paris demonstration drew about 11,000.