Hundreds of Afghans marched in new demonstrations on Saturday against Israel's deadly strikes on the Gaza Strip, with protesters in the capital also demanding that US troops pull out of Afghanistan.

The rallies followed demonstrations by thousands of Afghans on Friday, at which protesters demanded an end to the Israeli attacks that began on December 27 and have so far killed more than 430 Palestinians.

In Kabul, up to 600 demonstrators marched in the city centre, holding banners that read "Israel commits crimes, America supports", and shouting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America".

Some of the marchers said the United States should pull its troops out of Afghanistan, where they are helping the country fight an extremist insurgency.

In the eastern city of Jalalabad, up to 400 people took to the streets to condemn the attacks — accusing the United Nations of failing to act, witnesses said.

"The UN is silent on this issue. It means they have no sympathy for Muslims," said a statement read out at the protest.

They also called for Islamic countries to cease all trade with the Jewish state and stop using its products.

Hundreds more protested in the town of Charikar, north of Kabul, according to Afghan media.

Afghanistan, which does not recognise Israel, has also condemned the attacks in Gaza and demanded an immediate halt to the strikes.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Israeli Arabs also protested on Saturday — in the northern town of Sakhnin — over Israel's deadly week-old offensive against the Islamist-controlled Gaza Strip.

Crowds brandishing Palestinian flags and placards marched through the city centre chanting "Gaza will not surrender to the tanks and bulldozers!", and "Don't fear, Gaza, we are with you!".

Israeli Arabs have staged several massive demonstrations since Israeli warplanes launched waves of air strikes on Hamas targets in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip last Saturday.

Medics inside Gaza say the offensive has killed at least 436 Palestinians in the past week and wounded more than 2290.

Thousands of police deployed in Sakhnin and across northern Israel on Saturday, following a number of violent protests against the Gaza operation.

Some protesters in Sakhnin called Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak a "coward" and accused him of "collaborating with the Americans".

The 1.4-million-strong Arab-Israeli community makes up about 20 percent of the country's population, and consists of the descendants of the 160 000 Palestinians who remained after the creation of Israel in 1948.

AFP