Today (15 May 2021) across Britain, hundreds of thousands of people gathered to protest the oppressive Israeli regime and their constant bombardment of Palestinian people in cities across Britain including London, Sheffield, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Aberdeen.
Thousands of people made themselves present to voice their opposition to the fascistic regime of Benjamin Netanyahu. These protests have been a result of recent aggressions by the Israeli Defence Force which, at the time of writing, have resulted in death or 65 in people 19 of which are children. The Israeli government has Justified the deaths of Innocent civilians by stating that they were purely Hamas weapon caches; this has since been disproven by the fact that they have attacked residential buildings where families are living.
In London, the protest started at Marble Arch and finished at the Israeli embassy where a number of speakers voiced their opposition to Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people. It has been estimated that over 100,000 people were in attendance at the march today, making it the largest march of it’s kind for decades.
The Young Communist League were also present for the march showing their solidarity with the struggle of Palestinian people and receiving a great deal of support from fellow protestors. Protesters in London were also joined by protesters at the Colombian embassy who are also protesting the atrocities committed by the Colombian government. The solidarity from both protesters was very clear to see in the face of two repressive regimes. The YCL was also present in other protests up and down the country where they showed their solidarity with the cause of the Palestinian people.
Addressing the crowd, Husam Zomlot, Head of Palestian Mission to the UK, declared, “There are no two sides brothers and sisters there is only one side the fight to end injustice . we will stay on our land and we will be buried beneath our land and we will never waver.”
The true extent of the crimes that have been carried out by the Israeli government have now become apparent to the people of Britain with over 72% viewing the Israeli government negatively. In the UK broadcasters have attempted to paint the conflict as a two-sided conflict that has not worked as people have realised that the fourth largest military in the world are currently in the process of slaughtering innocent people.
The monopoly and state media support in Britain for the Israeli government is representative of the British government support for the Israeli government and their business interests in the form of economic and military aid to Israel. The Labour Party have also shown complete in competence in addressing the issues that are faced by Palestinian people. Going with the same narrative that the Conservatives have, Keir starmer has pushed the narrative that there are two sides to the conflict. It is utterly disheartening to see that a party that markets itself as a defender of human rights and oppressed people cannot bring itself to actually stand up for the values that it once purported to hold.
With one of the largest actions today in popular support for Palestinian people in recent history what is certain is that in Britain the general public’s support for the Palestinian people shows no sign of wavering. Protests are planned next week it is only showing that more resistance and pressure will be put on Israeli government to end its genocide of the Palestinian people.
Ben Ughetti, is a member of the YCL’s East of England branch
