Hi Giles,

Today is Nakba Day. Every year on this date, Palestinians commemorate the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948. Now, 72 years later – during a pandemic and against international law – Israel is threatening to annex parts of the West Bank. Take action now to prevent this further dispossession of the Palestinian people.

In 1948, Israel declared itself a state. In the process, over 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly displaced – exiled, or forced to flee from violence inflicted by militias, which later became the Israeli military. Hundreds of Palestinian villages were destroyed, making way for new settlements that now make up the state of Israel. Palestinians call this the ‘Nakba’, Arabic for catastrophe. Palestinians have never been able to return to their homes. Their right of return, which is enshrined in international law, is a core part of the Palestinian struggle.

The Nakba is not only a historic event, it’s an ongoing reality. Israel’s militarised occupation and settlement building in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are part of a 72-year history of dispossession and denial of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

Now, after working up to it for years, Israel is threatening to follow through with its plans to annex parts of the West Bank, in blatant disregard for international law and in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Tell the UK government to take action to stop Israel from annexing the West Bank.

The UK government has voiced its opposition to annexation, yet it continues to sell arms to Israel and allows trade in goods from illegal settlements. It is time for the UK government to take action and to send a clear message that annexation will not be tolerated. Tell your MP to sign Early Day Motion #464, which calls for the UK government to respond to annexation by imposing sanctions on Israel, and to sign Early Day Motion #225, calling for a ban on illegal settlement trade.

In solidarity,

Chi-Chi Shi
Campaigns Officer – Militarism and Security
War on Want