Palestine supporters step up ceasefire pressure on Welsh MPs

Martin Shipton

Supporters of the Palestinian cause are stepping up pressure on MPs to press for a ceasefire as the death toll mounts in Gaza.

Members of Rhondda Cynon Taf Palestine Solidarity Campaign (RCTPSC) took their call for peace and justice to the streets of Pontypridd – and to the office of local Labour MP Alex Davies-Jones.

The activists pressed their case for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. They sang for justice and engaged with passing members of the public, many of whom recognised the human tragedy unfolding in Gaza and who were supportive.

Mairead Canavan of RCTPSC said: “It brought together a group of young activists, many of whom were very keen to see local action and want our MPs to know how angry they are about their refusal to even correspond with their constituents on the subject.

“A couple of local people were very pleased to see a local demo and came to join us. Many people stopped to watch and listen to what was going on.”

“We urge Alex Davies-Jones MP, and all RCT MPs, to exercise influence to push for an immediate ceasefire and to work towards a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The world is watching, and we must all do our part to stand up for justice and human rights for the people of Palestine.

“The ongoing violence and oppression against the Palestinian people must end. We call on our government to take a stand against the illegal occupation of Palestinian land and to support the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination.

“We cannot remain silent while innocent civilians, including women and children, are being killed and displaced from their homes. It is time for our government to hold Israel accountable for its actions and to support a just and lasting solution to the conflict.”

Peace

Last November the group wrote an open letter to Ms Davies-Jones in which they stated: “You say in your letter to a constituent the conflict ‘has seen children fleeing their homes and innocent civilians terrified they will die in the darkness out of sight, [and this] has redoubled my belief that the international community must work to finally secure peace in the region.’

“Thousands of children and civilians have fled their homes. Indeed, they have been ordered to leave by the Israelis, who have then proceeded to bomb homes in what can only be regarded as indiscriminate.

“You say you ‘cannot begin to imagine the scale of suffering and grief’. Well, it is time to start, for what is going on has to stop. We have all seen reports on our screens of entire families being killed in the bombings, of children still buried in the rubble beneath collapsed buildings. We see parents cradling their dead children stricken with grief. Body parts are scattered after attacks. This conflict did not start on October 7. Attacks on Palestine and Palestinians have been going on for decades. And yes, we condemn attacks on civilians of any nationality or religion.”

Ms Davies-Jones said at the time: “I am responding to constituents who contact me directly – I have nothing to add.”

Denials

Meanwhile the Observer has reported that, according to a leaked recording, the UK Government has received advice from its own lawyers stating that Israel has breached international humanitarian law in Gaza but has failed to make it public.

The comments, made by the Conservative chair of the House of Commons select committee on foreign affairs, Alicia Kearns, at a Tory fundraising event on March 13, are at odds with repeated ministerial denials on the issue.

On the evening of March 30, Kearns, a former Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence official, who has repeatedly pressed ministers, including Foreign Secretary David Cameron, on the legal advice they have received, stood by her comments and called for the government to come clean.

“I remain convinced the government has completed its updated assessment on whether Israel is demonstrating a commitment to international humanitarian law, and that it has concluded that Israel is not demonstrating this commitment, which is the legal determination it has to make,” she said. “Transparency at this point is paramount, not least to uphold the international rules-based order.”

The revelation will place Lord Cameron and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak under intense pressure because any such legal advice would mean the UK had to cease all arms sales to Israel without delay.

Legal experts said that not to do so would risk putting the UK in breach of international law itself, as it would be seen as aiding and abetting war crimes by a country it was exporting arms to.