PRO-Palestine groups have joined hands around the Houses of Parliament in London in protest at the UK Government’s ongoing refusal to halt arms sales to Israel.
A coalition of pro-Palestinian organisations led by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign surrounded the Palace of Westminster on Thursday evening to condemn ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza and urge the UK Government to stop selling arms to the country.
The Labour MPs John McDonnell and Dawn Butler were seen joining hands at Parliament Square as protesters held banners which read “Stop the genocide”.
The ring around Parliament for Palestine is forming 🇵🇸#StopArmingIsrael pic.twitter.com/BvsLeSbYFe
— PSC (@PSCupdates) July 18, 2024
Ben Jamal, the director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said: “The Labour Government has been elected with a huge majority but lost votes in the election to candidates who called clearly for action to hold Israel to account for its ongoing genocidal assault on Palestinians in Gaza, which to date has killed over 40,000 Palestinians, and its decades-long violation of Palestinian rights.
“If the new Labour Government is truly committed to the upholding of International Law and rights, then it will take 3 immediate actions: restoring funding to UNRWA; publish the legal advice relating to the sale of weapons to Israel and act to end them; support all actions in the ICJ and the ICC to hold Israel to account for its war crimes in Gaza.
John McDonnell (@johnmcdonnellMP) Dawn Butler (@DawnButlerBrent) and Iqbal Mohamed join the ring around Parliament for Palestine 🇵🇸 pic.twitter.com/o9RqxE2Cpk
— PSC (@PSCupdates) July 18, 2024
“The linking of hands around parliament will remind all new MPs of the huge body of public opinion in support of these demands.”
It comes after a report published by Oxfam found that the Israeli military was weaponizing water against Palestinians in Gaza, destroying water facilities and cutting off external supplies.
