At the end of Saturday’s London March the first speaker at the rally in Whitehall was Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, who said: ‘Demand an end to genocide, put sanctions on Israel now! Demand the UK government takes its responsibilities seriously.’
He told the rally: ‘Now, the war criminals Netanyahu and Gallant must be arrested and put on trial. Their place is not in any position of power. 150,000 Palestinians have been wounded or killed in Gaza. Is that enough for the warmongers and the supporters of Israel?
‘Is there a magical number above 14,000 Palestinian children that need to be killed? All those who have taken our land and stolen our rights must and will be held accountable.
‘The responsibility is for upholding international law lies with Israel’s allies. End support to Israel now stop arming Israel. And impose sanctions sanctions now. Recognise the state of Palestine now.
‘Allow me here to send a message of love, kinship and gratitude to our Lebanese brothers and sisters, our courageous journalists, our tireless doctors, our heroes the inspiring children of Palestine.
‘Our collective people will never give in. Our liberation is your liberation. We will prevail together until Palestine is free.’
‘The next speaker was Kim Johnson MP for Liverpool Riverside, who said: ‘Over 43,000 killed, 73% of them women and children. Medics, aid workers, journalists killed in their thousands.
‘Israeli drones are used to target children and have been shown to be intentionally targeting and firing at their major arteries. Israel’s Western allies are turning a blind eye. Comrades, enough is enough. No more mealy-mouthed words. Immediate ceasefire! Immediate arms embargo now!’
Ahmed Mukhberty, a Palestinian doctor, said: ‘I’ve come here from Gaza and I want to tell you, these protest marches mean a lot to the people of Gaza. Medical doctors in Gaza work under the most difficult conditions. Israel is trying to kill all the people of Gaza. 36 hospitals were out of service at one point but the health system is now functioning again, medical students are now receiving that education. Medical doctors are graduating in February.
‘The end of this occupation is coming very near, we are sure about it, from the oldest to the kids.’
Andrew Murray from Stop the War said: ‘Every single day for the last 13 months the equivalent of a classroom of children has been killed. We have to say to Keir Starmer and David Lammy their deaths are on you. John Healey, the defence secretary, has purportedly said we can’t stop sending arms to Israel because it would upset the Americans.’
Naomi Treblesi from the Jewish Bloc said: ‘This is a war of extermination against the Palestinians of all generations across Palestine and Lebanon. Globally, Jews for Palestine from 18 countries say stop arming genocide, ceasefire now! End the illegal occupation, arrest the war criminals. Trade unions must take action.’
Ibrahim Khadra, British Palestinian from Gaza, said: ‘We refuse to be silent while Gaza is burning. As a journalist, I want to speak about the incredible courage of Palestinian journalists. David Lammy said there are no journalists in Gaza. I say to him there are many brave journalists in Gaza and many have been killed doing their work.
‘And I say to everyone here today, talk about Palestine write about Palestine. Knowledge is power. When we tell the truth, we make it harder for the lies to prevail.’
Ismael Patel from Friends of Al-Aqsa, said: ‘What Israel is doing is a crime against humanity and genocide. Words are not enough, action is required. Stop the arms. Demand Israel is thrown out of the United Nations and all educational institutes, and all international and sporting bodies. Likewise, throw Israel out of all industrial, cultural and artistic institutes. We must not allow ourselves to be corrupted by their inhumanity.’
Roger Mackenzie from CND, said: ‘Please come to an emergency demonstration we are holding here next week on December 7th against their nuclear war plans, under which they have taken us to the brink with with their war in Ukraine.’
Actress Juliet Stevenson said the Palestinian people are being brutally assaulted, and we have also witnessed an assault on the truth. The propaganda has been deafening. Cancelling performances and book events that speak for the Palestinian cause must end. What is the value of art, if not to represent our shared humanity? To stay neutral in the face of injustice is to support it.’
Khaled Abdullah, an actor said: ‘How can this be real? After 14 months, more children are orphaned, more mothers and fathers have lost their children. The world knows this and the world’s greatest war criminal Netanyahu is applauded at the US Congress. We have to change this.’
Andy McDonald MP for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East, said: ‘The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant and the world must uphold international law, no ifs, no buts. Arrest Netanyahu now and recognise the State of Palestine, now!’
Jeremy Corbyn MP, said: ‘I have to read out a message from Doctor Hussain, doctor at Kamal Adwan hospital in northern Gaza. After releasing him, the Israeli Defence Force followed him into the hospital and smashed up all the equipment it could as he went into the hospital. Then his son and his daughters were very badly injured but still he went on working at the hospital.
‘Dr Hussain said: “This is a war of extermination. The targeting of our health service is relentless. This entity will continue to do what it wants but they don’t realise that we will be here so long as there are civilians in northern Gaza. We will remain, but we are being exterminated. Please send the message widely. Our civilians have been calling us from under the rubble. But now those calls have gone silent.”
‘I say to our government,’ Corbyn warned: ‘If you continue to provide arms to a government that has been found guilty of war crimes do not be surprised if the long arm of the law will come to you as well.’
Morgan Bassichis, Jewish Voice for Peace from New York City said: ‘I’m one of thousands of anti-Zionist Jews in the USA. We are so proud of your marches. As Jews in the US, more and more are refusing every day to be used as part of the Israeli propaganda claim that the Israeli state is anything to do with Jewish safety. It has everything to do with profits for the arms manufacturers and the imperialists.
‘Don’t you tell us it’s complicated. Burning and bombing a generation of children is not complicated, it’s called genocide. The majority of Americans say stop arming Israel now. To our Jewish siblings here in the UK we proudly join you in rejecting Zionism wholesale, completely, without reservation. I know without a doubt that we will never back down. The Palestinian struggle is leading the world for a future on this planet. Free, free Palestine.’
Liz Wheatley from Unison, said: ‘We continue to call for an immediate ceasefire. Our movement has much more to do. We have to demand of Keir Starmer, stop arming Israel now and recognise Palestine. Now, the trade unions have a role to play in this magnificent movement.’
Faris Aman, Palestinian Forum in Britain, said: ‘Who does our spineless careerist foreign minister David Lammy think he is, saying there are no journalists in Gaza? He’s not worth the dust on their shoes. And he had a photo op with the war criminal Netanyahu.’
Jess Barnard from the Labour Party NEC, said: ‘Millions in Britain are appalled at the British government supporting genocide. I told Starmer to stop arming Israel. I asked him if he would arrest Netanyahu and he has accepted that the ICC ruling must be upheld. However, when I called on Starmer to stop sending arms to Israel he continued to try to justify it.’
Final speaker was Ben Jamal, the director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, who said: ‘There are 150,000 of you here today. This week, Save the Children revealed that 130,000 children are trapped in northern Gaza – trapped with insufficient food and water. Israel’s leader is now a fugitive from justice. He must be arrested and put on trial.
‘We take hope from this week. This week saw the TUC day of action on Palestine. We urge the TUC and the trade union movement to go further. Those working for arms companies and arms factories must be supported if they refuse to be complicit in arming Israel. The next march is on January 18th. We will march from the BBC back here to Whitehall.’
