Uri Weltmann’s message to our rally in London
The following message, from Standing Together’s National Field Organiser Uri Weltmann, was read at our rally in Parliament Square on 9 May.
We demonstrate today separately – in London and in Tel-Aviv – but despite the physical distance, we carry forward the same banners for the same cause. Seven months into this bloody war, it is clear that what is needed is an immediate ceasefire agreement, to stop the killing of innocents in Gaza, to return the hostages, and to allow humanitarian aid to reach those starving civilians who badly need it.
Earlier this week, the Israeli army – under orders from Netanyahu’s government – ordered Palestinians in Rafah to start evacuating. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians – displaced from their demolished homes, mourning the loss of their family members and friends – are now ordered to leave the tent cities in which they huddled, lacking proper food and basic medical supplies, and to march towards an unknown fate. This is a human catastrophe and a political nightmare.
Netanyahu and his far-right coalition partners are bent on underemining progress towards a ceasefire agreement. The messianic vision that guides them, of a Great Israel and expanding the settlement project, deeply undermines the safety and security of both Jewish-Israelis as well as Arab-Palestinians, both citizens of Israel as well as those who live in the Occupied Territories.
The only way to guarantee the future of all those who live in our shared homeland, is not through war and occupation, but through an Israeli-Palestinian peace, that would guarantee freedom, equality, security and independence for both peoples.
The work of UK Friends of Standing Together in getting this message across to UK audiences, is incredibly important for us. We draw encouragement from the pictures of your vigils and from your commitment to building bridges with various communities and with the trade unions of your country. By popularizing our shared message and strengthening our joint values, you can help impact the political conversation in your country, in a way that builds unity across difference. We value your efforts and feel enriched by our solidarity.