Ahead of a vote in the U.K. parliament on 15th of November, we urge British members of parliament to vote for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, to support an end to the ongoing atrocities, mass killings and destruction faced by innocent civilians in Gaza.
In just four weeks, over 11,000 Palestinian civilians have been killed in Gaza, more than 4,500 of them children, and close to 200 killed in the West Bank, accompanied by rising settler terrorism that resulted in the depopulation of several villages and the displacement of over 1,000 people.
This is an unprecedented aggression against the Palestinian people, in Gaza, the West Bank and everywhere.
Schools, hospitals, refugee camps and places of worship have been bombed, this is a war cime. The forcible transfer and displacement of an estimated 1.1 million people from northern Gaza is a war crime. Israel cutting off food, water, fuel, and electricity supplies to the 2.3 milion civilian population of Gaza is a war crime. Collective punishment is a war crime under international law.
More UN workers have been killed in Gaza than in any comparable period in the UN’s history and more journalists have been killed in Gaza, than in any period of conflict since 1992.
120 countries have called for a ceasefire, leading UN agencies, the UN General Secretary, the World Health Organisation and the World Food Programme, have called for a ceasefire; over 700 leading international NGO’s (including Oxfam, Save the children, Christian Aid and Medical aid for Palestinians) have called for a ceasefire; the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury have called for a ceasefire, the French President has called for a ceasefire.
Now is not the time for mere pauses, the scale of destruction is already too grave and aid agencies have said that short pauses cannot provide sufficient time to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
There is no military solution to this conflict, there never has been, neither side benefits from abandonment of working towards a political solution. There will be a ceasefire, the question is how long it will take and how much worse the situation becomes.
The UK parliament faces a decisive vote tomorrow, whether to call for an end to the indiscriminate violence, bloodshed and destruction or to show its moral leadership and courage, in calling for a ceasefire and playing a meaningful role in creating a genuine momentum for a political solution.
The Palestinian Mission to the UK calls for:
- An immediate and unconditional ceasefire.
- For the urgent establishment of a global humanitarian relief operation to meet the massive needs of Gaza’s traumatised, displaced and destitute population.
- For a clear position against the forcible transfer of the Palestinian population out of Gaza and all over the occupied Palestinian territory.
- Ensure this never happens again through a comprehensive International Criminal Court investigation into war crimes.
- For the full and equal implementation of international law and international resolutions.
- For the recognition of the State of Palestine on 1967 borders and admitting the state of Palestine as a full member of the United Nations, to uphold the Palestinian right to self-determination, freedom and independence and to address the root causes of conflict.
