Declassified UK and the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians have launched a major campaign to demand the end of impunity for Brits who served for Israel amid the Gaza genocide. Will you add your name to the petition?
EARLIER this year, Declassified UK revealed that more than 2000 Britons served for the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) since October 2023.
Remarkably, this information would never have come to light using sources in Britain.
Indeed, the UK Government does not collect data on British nationals serving in the IDF, and soldiers returning from Israel have not been questioned about their activities in the region.
Instead, the information came from a Freedom of Information request issued to the IDF by a lawyer in Israel.
Why is the UK Government not collecting any data on the movements of potential war criminals or properly investigating their activities?
At the very least, this raises serious concerns about state transparency and public safety.
But it also speaks to a broader lack of political will to hold the Israeli government or its military officers to account for the horrific scenes we’ve seen coming out of Gaza.
Over the past two and a half years, those scenes have included new-born babies being left to rot in incubators, families being burned alive in tents, apartment blocks being carpet bombed and humans being literally vaporised.
If any of the soldiers responsible for these crimes were returning to Britain, the UK Government would seemingly have no idea.
Consider this. Those who engaged in a live-streamed genocide could now be working in public institutions such as hospitals, the police and schools.
Nobody wants to live next to a war criminal – not least members of the Palestinian community in the UK who have family or friends who have been subjected to war crimes.
MAJOR CAMPAIGN
In the interests of transparency, public safety, and justice, Declassified UIK and the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) have launched a major campaign to demand that the UK Government:
- Track the movements of Brits who have served in the IDF
- Subject them to secondary screening where necessary at ports of entry
- Support robust war crimes investigations in line with domestic and international law.
These demands come on the back of a meeting earlier this year of the Hague Group, in which 40 states convened to demand accountability and the enforcement of international law in Palestine.
They are also simple requests, and firmly in the public interest.
Our campaign letter has already been signed by more than 60 prominent figures – from lawyers and genocide scholars to military veterans and politicians.
They include human rights lawyer Michael Mansfield, genocide scholar Martin Shaw, former British army general Charlie Herbert, anti-apartheid campaigner Andrew Feinstein, Green party leader Zack Polanski and the Mother of the House of Commons, Diane Abbott MP.
We opened the letter up to the public last week. Within the first 24 hours, it had gathered more than 6000 signatures. At the time of writing, we’re approaching 10,000.
What this shows is that there is a clear public interest in ending impunity for Britons who served with the IDF.
We want as many signatures as possible – and we are proud to invite the Sunday National’s readership to sign at www.declassifieduk.org/sign-now
NOT ONE PROSECUTION
THIS could not come at a more important moment.
The Metropolitan Police’s War Crimes Unit announced last month the closure of its scoping exercise into 10 British nationals accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity while fighting in Gaza.
In its decision letter, the Met said an effective investigation could not be conducted, nor was there a realistic prospect for a conviction.
That means there still hasn’t been one prosecution of – or apparently even a thorough investigation into – Brits serving in the IDF amid the genocide.
This apparent indifference does not apply to Britons who have travelled to fight in Ukraine.
Foreign Office travel advice specifically notes that travelling to Ukraine “to fight, or to assist others engaged in the war … may amount to offences under UK legislation”, adding: “You could be prosecuted on your return to the UK”.
There is no such warning explicitly cautioning Britons against fighting for the IDF in advice for travelling to Israel.
And while nobody in Britain has been prosecuted for serving in a genocidal army, the authorities have dedicated much-needed resources towards arresting more than 2000 people for displaying placards saying they oppose genocide and support Palestine Action.
Jonathan Purcell, ICJP’s head of public affairs and communications, said: “It’s possible that British people are taking part in a genocide and returning home to live, work and socialise alongside us. It is a truly chilling thought and it poses a serious threat to our national security.
“The UK Government must take this seriously and ensure it thoroughly investigates individuals who have gone to fight for the IDF, a genocidal army that has perpetrated countless war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
Laura Pidcock, Declassified UK co-director said: “To think, after everything we have witnessed over the last two years in Gaza – the way in which the population has been systematically killed, tortured, starved and displaced, with infrastructure destroyed and life made untenable by genocide at the hands of Israel’s occupation – that there could potentially be British people who participated in war crimes and not even being investigated by authorities is staggering.
“We urge as many people as possible to sign this letter asking for these entirely reasonable steps to be taken”.
If you have any information which might relate to this campaign, please contact the ICJP in confidence at: info@icjpalestine.com
