Plaid Cymru accuses Israel of genocide
Plaid Cymru members have called for a boycott of Israel over the war in Gaza, alongside declaring Israel guilty of genocide.
The Welsh national party has declared Israel an “apartheid regime” guilty of “genocide, ethnic cleansing and war crimes” during its autumn conference in Cardiff on Saturday.
A motion put forward by the party’s four MPs called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador from the UK “until such time as the Israeli government ends its apartheid and illegal actions”, and for the UK Government to ban arms sales to the country.
War
Israel began a military offensive in Gaza after about 1,200 Israeli people were killed by Hamas on October 7 last year.
More than 40,000 people have since been killed as part of the war, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Proposing the motion – which was supported unanimously – Ben Lake, MP for Ceredigion Preseli, said the war urgently needed a political settlement, including recognition of a Palestinian state.
He said: “If we want to see a safer world, then international law needs to be respected.”
Motion
The motion states that members of Plaid believe there must be an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, for hostages to be freed and an end to the occupation of Palestine.
It calls for the UK to support the work of the International Criminal Court in investigating potential war crimes committed by Hamas and the Israeli government.
The motion also calls for all members of Plaid Cymru, as well as Welsh national sporting and cultural bodies, to support an “economic and cultural boycott” of Israel.
Ahead of a vote on the motion, the conference heard from Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian’s top envoy to the UK, who said Israel must be “compelled” to meet its international obligations.
Compel
Mr Zomlot said: “Your role now is to continue reminding the UK Government of its own obligation under UK domestic law before international law.
“These obligations are clear, there must be an immediate ceasefire that should lead to an end to Israel’s presence in occupied territory in one year.
“If Israel continues to reject the international will, and it will reject, as it has been rejecting, Israel must be compelled to comply.”
Mr Zomlot’s call for an arms embargo was met with applause from Plaid members.
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I totally agree with Plaid Cymru. Apartheid Israel is committing genocide. With over 42000 civilians dead in Gaza. Hundreds killed in the occupied West Bank by the IDF & Jewish settlers. Where there’s no Hamas, I might add. We now have Zionist protagonist Benjamin Netanyahu state that Lebanon will become another Gaza with no endgame in sight. Question. What is Israel’s intention? And what’s their end goal? To remove Hamas and to allow Palestinians to return to their homes. No. Gaza has been totally destroyed. It’s clear now Israel doesn’t want a two state solution but intends to wipe Gaza… Read more »
I feel exactly the same as you. It’s a stain on all of humanity. Israel will never be forgiven by millions for the sheer evil and cruelty of their acts against Palestinian and Lebanese civilians. I will never forgive labour for basically backing these actions. Da iawn Plaid. It’s not anti Semitic to demand the end to an unfolding genocide.
would be good if Israel and the US state leaderships could bus themselves off to the Moon, and never come back. They are not fit for Human civilisation. World’s No 1 Terrorists.
‘Empty vessels make the most noise’.
Given that a tad under 20% of Israel’s citizens within its 1948 boundaries aren’t Jews and that the vast majority of those are Palestinians who can and do live ordinary lives, hold down jobs, run their own businesses and have their own political parties represented in the Cnesset, it’s hard to make the charge of genocide, in the pure sense of that word, ‘stick’ in relation to Israel. Unimaginable, for instance, to conceive a situation in which Germany in the 1930s would have tolerated an overtly Jewish political party or, indeed, of China these days allowing a Turkic Muslim one… Read more »
Many years ago when I was in school there was someone whose family had undergone some trauma. He soon learned that he could get his own way because of what had happened and the teachers would tell us that it was not his fault for bullying us because of what had happened to him. This person went on to become a horrible bully causing a lot of upset but anyone who stood up to him would get into trouble because it wasn’t the bully’s fault it was because of what has happened to his family. The fact is that bloke… Read more »