The 17th national march for Palestine was held in London on Saturday, 3rd August. It attracted over 100,000 people of all ages and backgrounds who once again peacefully proceeded through the capital’s streets with a range of posters, banners, and flags and constant chanting.
A feature of the march was the appearance of a red banner, half a kilometre long. The idea had come from thousands of US protesters who in early June held a red banner around the perimeter of the White Houe to symbolize the US’s red line with respect to Israel. President Biden had said in May that he would pause US weapons being sent to Israel if the Israel’s army went into Rafah. However, later the White House said that Israel’s operations in Rafah had not crossed the president’s “red line”.
The idea of creating a banner to symbolize how politicians speak of not crossing what they identified as their “red lines” was then used on 29th June in Bournemouth as it was carried through their streets. Rishi Sunak has done the same in the UK when he also declared that the invasion of Rafah was a “red line”.
Time and again such rhetoric has proved meaningless because our governments continue to send military aid to Israel that facilitates the continuing genocide in Gaza. Not only must we persist with the demonstrations, marches and vigils and the demands for boycotts, divestments and sanctions (BDS), but we must continue to bombard our political representatives in our demand for a permanent ceasefire, and the implementation of international law, holding to account all who violate it. The future of humanity demands that civil society takes this moral high ground.
Videos
Arzu, from Istanbul, Turkey, found the ICAHD UK flags while on the march and came to speak to us.
Jackie, a member of ICAHD UK tells us why she is on the march
Lynne Segal, an Australian-born, British-based socialist feminist academic and activist, author of many books and articles spoke to us while on the march.
Photos
Click on the photo to view full-size version.
