The situation in Gaza remains dire. A cease-fire has yet to be brokered, and the aid getting through to those trapped in the conflict zone is only a fraction of what is needed. Instead of action by the United Nations we have seen words exchanged and little progress. The media report claim and counter-claim about what is happening in Israel and Gaza (and now the West Bank, where settler violence has increased), and speculate about which actions are breaking the rules of war. Hamas’s attack on October 7th was clearly illegal under international law, but politicians and legal experts on all sides argue about whether Israeli is now exercising its right to self-defence (legal) or delivering ‘collective punishment’ (Illegal). Meanwhile, Palestinian deaths and injuries are mounting, and Hamas continues to fire rockets into Israel. The death toll in Gaza is already at least four times the number of Israelis killed by Hamas on October 7th. Whoever is right about the international rules of war, hundreds of people are being killed every day in a war the rest of the world doesn’t want and yet seems powerless to end.
The response of the UK government has been disappointing, as has that of Parliament. Neither the Prime Minister nor any of the party leaders has demanded an end to the bloodshed with any real conviction, and although individual speeches in both the Commons and the House of Lords have recognised the urgency of ending the slaughter, the general mood seems to be ‘leave it to the Americans, or some of the Gulf states’. Britain has a historical connection with the region, and we have a duty to play a role in solving this crisis. Instead, our government seems scared to tell Israel that although the murderous attack three weeks ago has understandably left the nation traumatised, it must avoid making poor judgements while in that state. Most of the world can that see that escalating the violence is unlikely to end well.We continue to lobby MPs and peers calling for a more courageous stance by the UK, and we also attend cross-party group meetings on a regular basis. We know some of you have written to your own MPs and to Ed Davey, and we urge you to keep writing. We are calling for an immediate huge increase in the amount of aid allowed in to Gaza, a cease-fire, and for both sides to observe human rights law on the protection of civilians in a time of war.
We also attach a link to two petitions:
For legislation to allow Palestinians the right to come to the UK if they have family here :https://petition.parliament.uk/signatures/138345581/signed
For a ceasefire in the Gaza war : https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/648292
On a more mundane matter, we’d like to remind anyone who is a member and didn’t paid the £30 annual subscription in September to please do so. There’s a link on our website.