Malaysian Roblox 'in-game' pro-Palestine protest goes viral

As global outrage continues to mount over Israel's relentless aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip, which has claimed the lives of more than 6,500 people by Wednesday, a unique wave of support for Palestine has emerged in the metaverse, in popular kids' video game Roblox. 

In a remarkable show of digital solidarity, a Malaysian player on the popular virtual reality platform created a pro-Palestine protest experience known as "(PALESTINE) Dataran Tanjung Mas."

Since its creation on October 14th, this virtual demonstration has garnered 60,000 'virtual protesters'. The Roblox server page for "(PALESTINE) Dataran Tanjung Mas" indicates that up to 200 users at a time can participate in this digital march.

Videos and images of this virtual protest have flooded social media, revealing animated block characters marching in unity while brandishing Palestinian and Malaysian flags on a computer-generated street. The virtual demonstration culminates with participants standing before a vast virtual billboard that reads "Solidarity Untukmu," which translates to "Solidarity for you" in Malay.

The virtual protest has drawn participants from across the globe.

Roblox is an online platform and game creation system that allows users to design, create, and play games created by other users. It was developed and published by the company Roblox Corporation. The platform was officially released in 2006 and has since gained immense popularity, especially among children and teenagers.