Ninth National March for Palestine is part of Global Day of Action to stop Israel’s genocide in Gaza
- Hundreds of thousands expected to protest in London march to Israeli embassy
- Protests in 100 cities, in at least 45 countries across 6 continents
- Israel continues to defy International Court of Justice orders that it take steps to ensure that possible genocide does not continue.
On Saturday February 17th hundreds of thousands of people are expected to demonstrate in London on a National March for Palestine. It’s part of a Global Day of Action to stop Israel’s genocide in Gaza which has killed 30 000 Palestinians, including at least 12 300 children. Thousands more are missing presumed dead under the rubble of Israel’s bombardment.
People in Gaza are suffering from lack of food, clean water, shelter, electricity, healthcare and sanitation. They remain under heavy attack, with no place of safety. More than one million have taken refuge in the southern Gazan town of Rafah, but Israel is threatening a ground invasion that would have further catastrophic effects.
UK political leaders have expressed “concern” about these events, but the two main parties continue to refuse to call for an immediate ceasefire or an end to arms exports to Israel, despite, as the ICJ found, plausible evidence that Israel that is committing the act of genocide. On Wednesday February 21st MPs will again be debating whether to call for an immediate ceasefire. Before the last vote 300,000 people responded to PSC’s call to email their MP’s. We are urging people to do the same again and this time to attend Parliament in person to demand a ceasefire directly by green carding their MPs.
Ben Jamal, PSC Director, said :
“At each stage of Israel’s genocidal attack on Gaza we’ve seen horrors that we never thought possible. The images this week from Israel’s bombardment of Rafah, of children with limbs torn apart, should be seared on the conscience of the world. Despite mounting pressure from world leaders, and in defiance of the ICJ ruling, the Israeli Government has made clear that it is about to launch an attack on Rafah that will lead to unprecedented levels of carnage.
The moral imperative is clear. An immediate ceasefire is a simple, absolute necessity. The legal imperative is also clear – the UK must abide by its responsibilities under the Genocide Convention to cease any activities that make it complicit. Our Government and Opposition are guilty of an historic failure of leadership and principle. They have chosen to take the side of those committing genocide over those who are its victims, and over the demands of international law. We, with the majority of people in the UK, will continue to hold them to account on our marches, protests, campaigns and in the voting booths.”