Several members of ICAHD UK travelled to London to meet with their MP for Palestine Lobby Day on Wednesday, 23 November. More than 180 MPs were contacted for this annual event, compared to 112 last year. Many of these MPs were lobbied at meetings on the day, which was supported by over 150 people from several organisations that work in a variety of ways for the end of the Occupation and justice for the Palestinian people.
The situation in Jerusalem, including house demolitions and the displacement of entire communities, was selected as one of the major issues to be highlighted at the lobby.
During the public meeting in the evening, speeches were given which included those by two MPs new to this issue. Earlier this year, Lib Dems Rob Russell, from Colchester, and Dr Julian Huppert, from Cambridge, both had their first opportunity to witness the reality on the ground. Russell exclaimed that he could not believe what he saw and stated that it was ethnic cleansing and Apartheid. “This is an issue that cuts across all political parties.”
While in Gaza, Huppert found the Palestinian people fantastic and said that with its policies, “Israel is shooting itself in the foot”.
Caroline Lucas, Green MP from Brighton, emphasised that with the bleakness in Palestine, it is the international community that keeps hope alive for the Palestians.