Between 10,000 and 15,000 protesters marched in London in solidarity with Gaza to condemn Israel's attacks that killed over 160 Palestinians. The march went from Downing Street to the Israeli embassy. Protesters carried Palestinian flags and signs saying "Stop Israel State Terrorism" and "End Israel's attacks on Gaza." They also condemned the British government for supporting Israel and media coverage justifying Israeli violence. Organizers pledged to continue campaigns for Palestinian freedom and a boycott of Israeli goods until the occupation and siege of Gaza end.
1. 25 November 2012
UK marchers pledge solidarity with Gaza
On Saturday between 10,000 – 15,000 Londoners turned out in solidarity with Gaza, marching
from Downing St to a rally near the Israeli Embassy on Kensington High St
PressTV Sunday Nov 25, 2012
Thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters have held a demonstration in central London to vent
their anger at the Zionist regime of Israel and their supporters in the British government.
Between 10,000 to 15,000 protesters marched from the British prime minister’s office on
Downing Street to the Israeli embassy to show their solidarity with the people of the Gaza Strip
and condemn the recent Israeli onslaught on the coastal area which killed more than 160
Palestinians and injured some 1,200 others.
“After eight days of brutal bombardment, which left 160 Palestinians dead, around 40 of them
children — our commitment to show Gaza that it was not alone was not dampened by the
ceasefire called two days ago,” said Lindsey German, convener of the Stop the War Coalition,
which organized the event.
“The demonstrators were united in their determination not just to protest at this latest outrage by
Israel but to call for an end to the siege of Gaza and to see the day — after 65 years of
occupation and brutal repression — when justice will be achieved for all Palestinians,” she
added.
2. The protesters who were carrying anti-Israel placards and Palestinian flags also condemned the
distorted media coverage, especially by the BBC which tried to pass the Israeli bloodshed in
Gaza as an act of self-defense.
Some of the placards read “Stop Israel State Terrorism”, “We Will Not Forget You Gaza”, “End
Israel’s attacks on Gaza” and “End the Siege on Gaza, Free Palestine.”
The National Demonstration in Solidarity with Gaza was held despite bad weather conditions
and incessant rain in London.
The Stop the War Coalition further said they seek to let everyone know that “the green light they
[the British government] give to Israel’s crimes is not in our name.”
The campaign group also pledged to continue to fight for “freedom for Palestine” as the Israeli
regime is not expected to stick to the current ceasefire, which it accepted under international
pressure, for long.
“There is no such thing as an Israeli ceasefire where Gaza or the West Bank are concerned. Our
campaign is but another step in the path to freedom for Palestine. Campaigning will go on — for
a boycott of Israeli goods and against any future wars in the Middle East,” German said.
Her comments follow revelations by Jews for Justice for Palestinians, which also participated in
the Saturday protest march, that the Israeli regime keeps killing Palestinians under the cover of
western media blackout, dismissing officials’ remarks that Israel has been committed to a
ceasefire and has launched the onslaught only to revenge Palestinians’ sporadic rocket fire.
“We write to express our astonishment at your statement of 15th November, when you said that
Hamas bears principal responsibility for the current crisis. It is difficult to square that with the
recorded pattern of attacks or with the resulting deaths and injuries, and impossible to square it
with the first-hand account of cease-fire negotiations,” the group wrote in a letter to British
Foreign Secretary William Hague.
“The statistics provided by OCHA (the UN Office for the Protection of Civilians) is the most
authoritative record of the intensification of the conflict. They show a pattern of mutual attacks
during the year to the end of October 2012, with 73 Palestinians being killed while no Israelis
were killed. Israeli forces also carried out incursions into Gaza together with destruction of crops
and the targeting of fishermen within Gaza’s Oslo-recognized maritime exclusion zone,” it
added.
3. PressTV report : Thousands of Brits march in solidarity with Palestinians