Jewish Britons decry ban on Palestine Action as ‘illegitimate, unethical’

Hundreds rally adjacent Downing Street arsenic delegation delivers missive to UK authorities calling for sanctions connected Israel.

Leading Jewish figures successful Britain person signed a missive to Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper denouncing the government’s determination to proscribe the activistic radical Palestine Action arsenic a “terrorist” organisation.

The transportation of the missive connected Tuesday coincides with a protestation organised nether the slogan Proscribe Genocide, Not Protest. The rally extracurricular Downing Street is expected to gully hundreds of participants, including figures from Britain’s Jewish community.

The letter, signed by astir 300 Jewish British citizens, condemns the prohibition arsenic “illegitimate and unethical” and calls for urgent authorities enactment against Israel implicit its behaviour of the warfare successful the besieged and bombarded Gaza Strip and implicit escalating unit engulfing the occupied West Bank.

A demonstrator holds a placard extracurricular London’s High Court arsenic judges determine whether the cofounder of Palestine Action whitethorn situation the government’s prohibition connected the radical [File: Toby Melville/Reuters]

Among the signatories are quality rights lawyer Geoffrey Bindman, filmmaker Mike Leigh, writer Michael Rosen and writer Gillian Slovo. Jenny Manson, chairperson of Jewish Voice for Labour and 1 of the pb organisers, said the radical was acting some arsenic quality beings and arsenic Jews with a motivation work to reason genocide.

“We are Jews horrified by the genocide being carried retired by Israel against the Palestinian people,” Manson said successful a statement. “For us, ‘Never again’ does not mean lone crimes against Jews but ne'er again by anyone to anyone.”

Speakers astatine the rally see Andrew Feinstein, lad of a Holocaust subsister and erstwhile South African MP; historiographer Joseph Finlay; documentary filmmaker Gillian Mosely; and comedian and writer Alexei Sayle.

Hundreds of thousands of radical successful the United Kingdom person been protesting play against Israel’s genocidal warfare since October 2023, making it wide they consciousness their voices aren’t being heard.

Protest contempt constabulary warning

The rally comes arsenic the rights radical Defend Our Juries confirmed that much than 500 radical person committed to “risking arrest” by participating successful a related objection connected Saturday aimed astatine overturning the prohibition connected Palestine Action.

Those taking portion are expected to clasp placards reading, “I reason genocide. I enactment Palestine Action.”

The Metropolitan Police Service has warned that expressing enactment for Palestine Action could pb to apprehension nether the Terrorism Act 2000.

“Anyone showing enactment for the radical tin expect to beryllium arrested,” a constabulary spokesperson said.

Defend Our Juries, which coordinated the campaign, rejected claims that the objection is intended to overwhelm instrumentality enforcement oregon the courts. “If we are allowed to protestation peacefully and freely, past that is nary fuss to anyone,” a spokesperson said.

More than 200 radical were arrested successful protests crossed the UK past period for displaying the aforesaid message.

The missive being delivered connected Tuesday urges the UK authorities to determination beyond “handwringing” implicit the concern successful Gaza and instrumentality meaningful action.

It calls for the contiguous designation of the State of Palestine and the imposition of sanctions connected Israel, including suspension of the UK-Israel commercialized agreement, an extremity to each exports utilized by the Israeli subject and the termination of UK subject and quality collaboration with Israel.

It besides calls for a prohibition connected each Israeli imports, ineligible accountability for UK citizens serving successful the Israeli subject and the summoning of Israel’s ambassador to the UK for her nationalist enactment of subject actions.

The missive states that opposing genocide, apartheid and taste cleansing successful Palestine is not anti-Semitic and should not beryllium criminalised.

“Criticising Israel and opposing the brutality … including taking nonstop action, are not terrorism,” it reads.

Palestine Action was banned successful July aft a high-profile incidental successful which the radical claimed work for damaging 2 Voyager craft astatine the Brize Norton aerial unit base, causing an estimated 7 cardinal pounds ($9.3m) of damage.

Last week, the High Court ruled that a ineligible situation against the prohibition by Palestine Action cofounder Huda Ammori could proceed, citing respective “reasonably arguable” grounds for review. However, the tribunal declined to intermission the prohibition earlier a three-day proceeding acceptable for November.

If upheld, the proscription means rank successful oregon enactment for Palestine Action is simply a transgression offence punishable by up to 14 years successful prison.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies