Statement on Gaza starvation and genocide
Stop Trump joins millions of people across the UK devastated and enraged by Israel’s live-streamed genocide and enforced starvation of the Palestinians in Gaza. Over the past 19 months, Israel has killed over 50,000 Palestinians.
Global human rights organisations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have called Israel’s actions in Gaza a genocide and the International Criminal Court has put out an arrest warrant for Israeli prime minister Netanyahu for war crimes.
UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs Tom Fletcher has warned that 14,000 babies could die in the next 48 hours if Israel does not allow aid to reach them.
Donald Trump gave the green light for mass expulsions from Gaza with his “Middle East Riviera” plan. The UK and Europe are now making noises to recognise an independent Palestinian state. Under international law Palestine, historic and present day exists, and must be recognised – but, we cannot and must not allow the government to only focus on this symbolic action while Israel’s genocide enters its final stages.
Shifting to a rhetorically more critical position is meaningless if the UK government still will not name the genocide and take real action to end its active participation. Stop Trump demands that the UK government clearly state that Israel is committing genocide and immediately:
- Uphold the ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu.
- Implement full sanctions on the state of Israel.
- End all arms sales to Israel.
- Back UK humanitarian aid agencies alongside the UN to deliver life-saving food, clean and safe drinking water, medicine and shelter to Gaza, independently and according to the principles of international humanitarian law.
- Back and implement a family reunification programme for Palestinians in Gaza with family in the UK, allowing family members with dependents to be saved from the genocide.
- Allow injured Palestinian children into the UK to receive urgent and life-saving medical care.
The UK government continues to sell arms, conduct RAF surveillance flights over Gaza and provide diplomatic and economic cover to Israel, over the past 19 months of the genocide. The UK government has failed to uphold its obligations under international law to hold Israel to account, leading to the inevitable devastating consequences.