Tag: vigil

Is the UK government going to take action?


The signs of a more robust stance are promising

September 2026

But as ever with government, words are not always matched by deeds. The Foreign Secretary’s statement and his subsequent remarks in a video expressing shock at being told medicines are being withheld from Gaza has drawn a series of rebukes and threats from a variety of sources.

In parliament he said that the proposal to build settlement E1 as it’s known “crosses a red line and cuts through the heart of the West Bank and risks making a Palestinian state unviable”. This is indeed the stated intention of some Israeli politicians. During the debate some MPs referred to ‘settler terrorism’.

His additional remarks made in a video have inflamed the situation further. “Frankly, it was horrific, what is unfolding,” Mr Miliband said. “The stories that people were telling me of medicines being blocked [and] children dying while waiting for vital life-saving treatment.” The Israelis have denied that there are any restrictions despite considerable evidence they have from charities like Physicians for Human Rights and Global Human Rights Clinic as well as a host of other NGOs and charities.

The US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has accused the Labour government of ‘Jew hate’ and that “they know no boundaries and and know no facts”. Strong stuff. A difficult claim to make as the Foreign Secretary is Jewish. The Times of Israel called his remarks ‘political positioning’ among other criticisms.

These are the familiar responses to any kind of criticism of Israel despite the mass of evidence of violence in the West Bank and Gaza.

Vigil

The 144th vigil took place yesterday (5th September) with around 25 in attendance. Filming has started of our video ‘Because …’ where we ask some participants why are they here. We will be continuing over the next few weeks running up to our 150th vigil.

The local MP, Mr John Glen has still not put in an appearance. We learned that one participant has written over 40 times to him yet has never received a reply. Mr Glen is a member the Conservative Friends of Israel lobby organisation. He has never mentioned the vigils in his weekly column courtesy of the Salisbury Journal. An MP is elected to represent all his or her constituents not just those who agree with them.

Double standards?

An enormous fuss was made last week over a Channel 4 film showing Reform party aids soliciting foreign donations which are illegal under electoral law. The undercover filming appeared to show the two of them seeking to conceal the source of foreign donations to make them appear as though they were from the UK. Two have been relieved of their posts. Yet there is no equivalent fuss of the huge amount of money the Israeli government has poured into its lobbying and the effect it has had on the attitudes of MPs towards the conflict. Background to James Orr can be seen here.

Around £1.5 million has been spent by the Israeli government on its parliamentary lobbying and it is thought that 180 MPs are members of the various party’s friends groups. This raises the obvious question ‘who are they representing?’ How can a member of parliament be such a friend and claim to be an impartial judge of both British interests and what is right in the Middle East and for Israel? Where do their loyalties lie?

Picture: courtesy of Peter Gloyns.

The next vigil is on 12th September at 5pm.

Sources: Times of Israel, Independent, MSN, Ha’aretz.

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UK government signals change re: Israel

Abstract architectural landscape sketch with grids, terrain, and structural lines

New Foreign Secretary indicates tougher approach to new settlements

September 2026

Ed Miliband, the Foreign Secretary has stated in the Commons that the government is prepared to adopt a tougher approach to the proposed new E1 settlement on the West Bank. This highly contentious development is particularly important because it splits the area into two parts thus making any prospect of a viable Palestinian state near impossible.

Israel has just issued tenders for the development of part of the project consisting of around 1,200 homes covering some 4.5 sq miles. Miliband joins a number of other states criticising Israel including Germany which has up to now, been a firm supporter. The UK has joined around 20 other countries and the European Union claiming the development to be unacceptable.

Government ministers have been under increasing pressure to take a firmer stance in relation to Israel. Andy Burnham has apologised for the previous stance of the Labour government. The ever increasing settler violence as well as the destruction of great swathes of Gaza is becoming harder to ignore politically. The encroachment is increasing all the time with over 60% of the land under Israeli control. There are now 2 million Palestinians living in an area of 150 sq km. This is approximately the same area as Havant in Hampshire which has a population of 127,000.

The Israeli embassy has referred to previous comments by the Ambassador saying ‘If Britain acts against the state of Israel, the state of Israel will act against Britain. We have the tools.” The Jewish Chronicle repeated this warning.

Erasure

Amira Hass, writing in the Ha’aretz newspaper (September 1st) quoting the opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot says:

“Erasure is the nightmare solution being written into reality every day. Knesset laws, politicians’ declarations, military orders, school textbooks and the holy real estate battalions operating in Gaza, the West Bank and the Negev all work, together and separately, to advance this “solution” diligently and without fear of international condemnation.”

Some argue that genocide, and the elimination of all Palestinians from Israel, has always been the policy of the government. As the Jewish writer Omar Bartov writes:

” […] for the past two years Israel has engaged in a genocidal operation in Gaza and all the indications are this was part of an intentional policy consistent with political and military rhetoric meant to “encourage” Palestinians to leave the Strip altogether (p 190)” [1]

The theme of the elimination of all Palestinians is amply described in the Jewish academic Ilan Pappe’s book The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine [2]. He notes that right from the start, Ben-Gurion led the Zionist movement to achieve ‘absolute Jewish domination’ of Palestine (p23 ff).

The grim toll of death continues in Gaza with the death toll now put at over 73,000, including 12,500 women, over 20,000 children and 174,500 injured.

The change in stance by the UK government is welcome. As the Ha’aretz article notes, the overwhelming military power possessed by Israel courtesy of the USA, has led it to pursue violent and military solutions. We are rapidly approaching the horrific October 7th massacre with no end of hostilities in sight.

Vigil

Vigils will continue in Salisbury and the next is this Saturday 5th September at 5pm for half an hour. The local MP Mr John Glen has never attended or acknowledged the vigils and is a proud member of the Conservative Friends of Israel group.

[1] Israel: What Went Wrong, Omar Bartov, 2026, Fern Press

[2] The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine, Ilan Pappe, 2006 (first published), One World

Sources: Guardian, Middle East Eye, Ha’aretz, Jewish Chronicle. Image created by AI.

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Good response to our 143rd vigil


We still turn out each week as the need is still there
Proposal to make a film
August 2026

One hundred and forty three vigils for peace in the Middle East supported by around 30 people yesterday (29 August). The photo shows one of our number standing on the traffic island and there were around 35 ‘honks’.

There has been some coverage of the situation in Gaza last week with reports on the yellow line which is slowly creeping across the territory forcing the Palestinians into a smaller and smaller area. According to the LA Times it is now 64% of Gaza. Nearly all the cultivable land has now been seized. According to recent estimates, the death toll is now over 73,000 and continuing despite the ceasefire. 174,000 have been injured. Around 1,300 have been killed since the ‘ceasefire’ and 4,361 injured. Settler violence has intensified in the West Bank.

We still await government action concerning our relations with Israel following the election of Andy Burnham as prime minister who apologised for the government’s stance in July. Although this apology was welcomed, few in the media noted that Burnham is a member of Labour Friends of Israel. On the web site Track Israel Lobbying Mr Burnham heads the page Hall of Shame as having received over £200,000.

The total received by MPs from Israeli organisations is a massive £1,574,262 (updated this month). It is reasonable to ask how independent are our members of parliament and to what extent are they representing the interests of those people whom they purport to represent when they are in receipt of such largesse?

Film

We are considering making a short film to be called ‘Because …’ which will have brief interviews with some of those who attend these vigils. We will be carrying out the interviews over the next few Saturdays. Anyone reading this who attends is willing to volunteer. The aim is for people to say they come to the vigils because … and to give their reasons.

We note once again that there has been no sign of the local MP Mr John Glen who is a member of the Conservative Friends of Israel group (see above) and has never mentioned them in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal.

Photo: courtesy of Peter Gloyns.

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Vigil No. 142


Nearly 30 attend the latest vigil in Salisbury

August 2026

The vigils continue and the 142nd was held yesterday in the Market Place, Salisbury. Recognition was good with around 100 or so seeming to take some kind of note of our presence. It’s quite a while now since we have had any serious criticism of our action.

There may be signs that things are changing on the political front. The new prime minister seems aware of the damage done by Sir Keir Starmer’s almost blinkered approach to Israel. Starmer was determined he said to ‘root out anti-Semitism from the party’ and claimed he had done so in his final PMQ. ‘Rooting it out’ was a fine objective but giving Israel almost unqualified support despite their atrocious actions in Gaza, and now the West Bank, quite another. The violence has increased markedly in the last few months with the IDF or Israeli police doing very little to stop it. Leaders of the party are fully behind the actions. Thirteen new settlements have been approved and they are designed to make any hope of a coherent Palestinian state impossible.

Andy Burnham is facing demands at next month’s party conference to declare Israel’s actions in Gaza to be genocide which he is reported to be reluctant to do. At his inauguration it appeared he understood the immense harm done by the government’s one-sided support. We shall have to see if words are turned in action.

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Another vigil and is the mood changing in the US?


Latest vigil – No 141 – is well attended

August 2026

Around 35 attended the latest vigil held in Salisbury’s market place and it is remarkable that they continue week after week. As we have said before, there is a mixture of people who come every week and those who turn up occasionally. Recognition is high and news of the terrible events in the region continue to appear on our screens and in the media.

The rising tide of settler violence achieved significant coverage last week even from the BBC which is extremely nervous of covering news from the area for familiar reasons. We noted a shift in attitudes in America in our last post and a forthright criticism by Mike Huckabee, the American ambassador, calling the settlers ‘Israeli terrorists’. This from a Zionist and Israeli apologist. What was important was not just the comment itself but that he felt able to make them.

Once again we note the absence of the Salisbury MP Mr John Glen who has never attended a vigil or ever mentioned them in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal. 141 weeks of silence is a powerful message. He is a member of Conservative Friends of Israel along with around 140 other MPs.

Israeli support for violence and the lack of healthcare for Palestinians claimed

A distressing report in Haaretz discusses the attitude of many Israelis towards Palestinians and particularly their health care or rather lack of it. They report:

“The majority of Israel’s Jewish public supports the worsening conditions of Palestinian patients, caused by their inability to receive necessary treatments. This isn’t the finding of any pollster – no one includes in their surveys a question like, “Do you support the elimination of Palestinian public healthcare?

“Yet this conclusion is inevitable, considering the fact that Israel’s Ministry of Finance continues unimpeded to steal the Palestinian Authority’s income from taxes and customs. Those revenues are meant for medical treatments, medications, medical staff salaries and the maintenance and development of hospitals and clinics”.

The article describes the lack of condemnation by a wide range of Israeli organisations and the writer concludes:

“[…] With great pain, you have to conclude that, in the eyes of too many Jews in Israel, also the slow killing of Palestinians, simply because they are Palestinians, is a legitimate policy.”

Public opinion in Israel is important especially with elections imminent. The hard right politicians who support the destruction of Gaza, the increasing West Bank settler violence and the prevention of health care described in the article, are in the ascendant. If the article is right, it does not look as though there will be much in the way of pressure to change the political climate.

Photo: Courtesy of Peter Gloyns

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Israel ‘concealing evidence of genocide’


140th vigil well attended. Need to maintain the spotlight on genocide and war crimes

August 2026

Around 35 turned out this week (8th) and this number swelled at times to over 40 with people stopping for a while. The need is still there with killings going on despite the so-called ceasefire. There were scarcely credible reports of a more permanent ending which almost certainly will come to nought. [UPDATE: Israel rejects Trump’s plan today 9th]. Israel is reported to be engaged in a process of concealing evidence of the genocide.

Destroying the evidence

One event beginning to happen is Israel is now busy trying to clear away the evidence of genocide. Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reports that around 10 million tonnes of material has been cleared away from Gaza. They report:

“The Israeli forces, along with Israeli civilian contractors, are conducting a wide and organised operation to process and clear the rubble from neighbourhoods and facilities they have destroyed in the Gaza Strip and relocate it from areas under their military control to outside the Strip.

“This is occurring without any official record of the quantities removed or independent oversight, and before international and local investigative committees have had the chance to survey, examine, and document the sites. This risks destroying crucial evidence of genocide and the remains of victims still unaccounted for under the rubble.

“These operations are not part of organised humanitarian efforts to rescue the missing, open roads, or prepare for reconstruction. Instead, Israel is acting unilaterally within closed areas under its military control by demolishing remaining buildings and then crushing, mixing, and transporting the rubble before forensic teams, evidence experts, and unexploded ordnance specialists can examine, document, and preserve the sites, along with the evidence and human remains […]”.

Since thousands of remains of Palestinians lie buried in this rubble, this represents a dreadful and unfeeling extension to the genocidal crimes Israel has already committed. The full story can be read here. A search of this topic was carried out and there is no sign of it being reported in any UK news outlet [accessed 9th].

Mass burial

Last week, a mass burial took place of 112 Palestinians, 40 of whom were children, killed in one of the deadliest strikes which took place since October 7th. An entire apartment block was demolished in November 2023 and 157 people are still missing. Their bodies could not be recovered until now.

No sign of the local MP Mr John Glen who despite the genocide and continuing killings is a ‘proud member’ of the Friends of Israel lobby group along with around 140 other MPs of all major parties.

Photo. Two members standing by a traffic island which attracted a good level of response from motorists. Photo courtesy of Peter Gloyns.

Sources: Euro-Med, Kuwait Times, Eupal, The Canary. No UK media could be found.

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Good attendance at latest vigil


Nearly 40 showing continued concern

July 2026

Vigil number 138 held this Saturday with just under 40 who came to support. It is amazing that people continue to come and although there are the diehards, new faces come each time. Recognition by passers-by was strong as many at 10 a minute at one stage and over 100 overall. We meet every Saturday in the market square by the Library at 5 pm. All are welcome.

The situation remains grim with 1,123 killed in Gaza since the October ‘cease fire’: cease fire seeming to mean slightly less killing than before. We have already noted the new prime minister, Andy Burnham’s apology for the shameful response by Sir Keir Starmer at the beginning of the conflict which did so much damage to the party and to his reputation. Aseel Baidoun, Deputy Director of Advocacy and Communications at Medical Aid for Palestinians, said:

“Prime Minister Burnham enters Downing Street with an opportunity to chart a new course on the UK’s response to Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territory. His acknowledgement that the last administration ‘got it wrong’ on Gaza is a welcome first step. It must now be followed by urgent action to uphold international law and protect Palestinian lives.

“[…] The new Government must match its words with action by suspending arms transfers to Israel, ending trade with illegal settlements, suspending the UK-Israel Trade and Partnership Agreement, and taking meaningful steps to ensure accountability for violations of international law.”

We noted in a recent post that the government is actively supporting arms sales with money, insurance and organisation at events such as Farnborough. The government has closed down its monitoring unit in the Foreign Office so will be even less aware of events on the ground.

Israel protest

One piece of good news is that Al Jazeera report that there have been demonstrations in Tel Aviv against settler violence which continues at pace. The UN’s OCHA reports that Fatalities linked to settler attacks in 2026 have already surpassed the total recorded during all of 2025, with 18 Palestinians killed as of 20 July compared with 17 throughout 2025.

About 90 Palestinians were displaced by demolitions and settler attacks during the reporting period, most following a large-scale demolition carried out by Israeli authorities in a Bedouin community in Qalqiliya governorate. Demolitions and settler attacks continued to affect Palestinian homes, water systems, schools and livelihood assets, further undermining access to essential services and community resilience.

We await to see if the new prime minister and new Foreign Secretary who replaces the largely ineffective Yvette Cooper, will bring changes to British policy concerning the region and our approach to the Israeli regime. No sign of the local MP, Mr John Glen who is a proud member of the Conservative Friends of Israel along with around 200 other MPs.

Sources include: UN, Lemkin Institute, Guardian, Al Jazeera, OCHA.

Photo courtesy of Peter Gloyns

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The vigils continue


Vigil number 137 held on July 18th

We continue to hold vigils in Salisbury’s market place on Saturday evening. Last Saturday was the 137th such event. Thinly attended this time but we were briefly joined by 26 Brazilian students which was a delight.

We continue because the situation in the Middle East gets no better. We await how the new prime minister handles the situation in Gaza but he has already apologised for the party’s response and approach to the conflict which was very damaging. Sir Keir Starmer was so desperate to lay the ghost of ‘anti-Semitism’ that his response to Israel’s violence and destruction of the territory was distorted. Now David Lammy has made statements about the mistaken approach but it has to be noted that there was little sign of this up till now. He did not feel the need to resign.

Dr Hussan Abu Safiya

The UN said in a report last month:

“The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel expresses its grave concern at credible reports that Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, a Palestinian doctor and Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza Strip, has been subjected to continued and severe abuse since his detention by the Israeli authorities in December 2024.

“The Commission calls for the immediate, unconditional and safe release of Dr. Abu Safiya and of all medical personnel held in arbitrary detention by Israel. It also urges the Israeli authorities to provide immediate independent medical care for Dr. Abu Safiya.

“The continued arbitrary detention of Palestinian medical personnel and the severe mistreatment they are subjected to are deplorable and flagrant violations of international law. The actions of the Israeli Prison Service guards towards Palestinian detainees raise grave concerns of violations of international law that likely amount to international crimes. Dr. Abu Safiya’s medical condition is the direct result of these actions. The Commission underscores that persons deprived of liberty are protected against murder, torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and sexual violence”.

He is held in an underground prison.

Israeli forces now occupy 65% of the Gaza strip in contravention of Trump’s peace plan. The number of Palestinians killed is 73,770 of whom 20,000 or more are children. The total is likely to be much higher with thousands buried and unaccounted for under rubble. 1,144 have been killed since the ceasefire in October.

Sources: Guardian, BBC, Al Jazeera, Copilot Search, UN,

Image courtesy Peter Gloyns

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Will the UK’s attitude to Israel change?


Will the new prime minister really make significant changes?

Vigil #136

July 2026

Questions, questions, which are posed following the near certainty of Andy Burnham becoming the new prime minister of Britain and his stated apologies for the UK’s uncritical support of Israel and its genocidal actions in Gaza. It is one thing to offer Israel support and sympathy after the horrific attack on October 7th but quite another to continue to offer such support while the destruction of Gaza took place including the near total demolition of medical facilities, schools and other public facilities. The deliberate killing of children, over 20,000 so far – not as an accidental consequence of military action but as a matter of stated policy – is unsupportable yet our nation has continued to support it.

We noted in a previous post that Mr Burnham waited until he had the succession in the bag so to speak, before making this announcement and wondered if this was because he was mindful of the huge number of MPs who are members of a Friends of Israel group – 69 of whom are in his own party and over 200 in the House of Commons as a whole – as well as the powerful influence Israeli lobbying has over our media including the BBC. If this is correct, the question becomes will he be able to follow through? If he did not feel comfortable with promising a reset because of fears of a lobbying backlash, how likely is it he can withstand this influence and lobbying once he gets into No 10?

It is to be questioned how an MP and more particularly senior ministers – which includes shockingly, Sir Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and David Lammy – be members and act impartially as a minister. Whom do they serve? A question asked of the Salisbury MP, Mr John Glen a ‘proud’ member of the much larger Conservative Friends of Israel, which he said was unworthy of an answer. Sir Keir’s support which emerged when he made the quite disgraceful comment that Israel was justified in cutting off water and power to Gaza, led in part to his defenestration as prime minister.

Vigil 136

Picture courtesy of Peter Gloyns

About 30 attended the latest vigil on a hot evening. Quite a lot of support and thumbs up signs and passers by taking pictures, One offensive gesture noticed. Recognition was again quite high. No sign of Mr Glen and no mention of the vigil in his weekly column in the Salisbury Journal.

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Fishers killed off Gaza coast


Israeli forces intensify killing of fishers off the coast of Gaza
Vigil No 135

Gaza is effectively surrounded and has no port or means of accessing neighbouring territory. It is an open air prison. With the tight restrictions of aid entering the territory and the annexation of nearly all the cultivable land by Israeli forces, one of the few means of livelihood is fishing. Gazans have been restricted to inshore fishing only, they cannot venture into the Mediterranean. Since October 2023, attacks on fishers have intensified with 238 killed since October 7th according to the Gaza Fishers Syndicate. Channel 5 News carried a report yesterday [we have been unable to locate a link]. It appears to add an element to the policy of starvation being meted onto the territory. [ADDITION 6 July]. We have been able to find a short film by the BBC which covers much the same ground.

A UN report said :

‘This thematic note highlights the systematic attacks on fishers and fishing infrastructure in Gaza, which have had devastating consequences on local livelihoods and the fishing industry, driving expanding protection concerns and risk of famine for families across Gaza.

‘According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Israeli military restrictions on fishing activities in Gaza significantly intensified after 7 October 2023, and fishers reported that they have been repeatedly attacked, onshore and at sea, by the Israeli military. In parallel, the Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) in Gaza has documented the destruction of key fishing infrastructure, including Gaza’s main port and several landing sites, along with extensive damage to landing sites and fishing vessels, rendering fishing operations off the coast of Gaza nearly impossible.

‘These attacks have resulted in the collapse of the fishing industry, which was once a main source of livelihoods and food for Gaza’s population. Combined with the destruction of agricultural land and other food production infrastructure, and severe restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid and commercial goods and supplies, the targeting of Gaza’s fishers and fishing infrastructure by the Israeli military has contributed directly to risk of famine and growing protection concerns for vulnerable persons, creating conditions which threaten the survival of Gaza’s population’ [UN, May 2025]

The vigils continue

Number 135 yesterday with over 30 present with occasional ‘drop-ins’ by passers by which is encouraging. Recognition was very high with probably over 100 taking some kind of notice of our presence. In view of the continuing violence in Lebanon and the killing which continues to take place in Gaza, it is still a necessary action. Over 73,000 have been killed according to AP and nearly 1,000 since the ‘ceasefire’.

Photo: Courtesy of Peter Gloyns

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