The 52nd Vigil was held today in the Market Square in Salisbury and 30 attended. There was a kind of irony around today’s event as we looked out over the Market Square which was festooned with Christmas lights with the market in full swing. The Vigil is about peace in the region where Christianity began. With an estimated 44,000 dead in Gaza the notion of ‘peace and goodwill to all men’ seemed a long way off. Gaza and Palestine generally (however it is delineated) is precisely the area where Christianity was started yet here we are looking at a raging war and hatred seeming to be the defining spirit.
There is a temporary cessation of hostilities in Lebanon but few would confidently this to extend for any length of time.
Today (Sunday 1st December) we were in the Cathedral Cloisters from 10:00 until noon for a Write for Rights event so if you are in the area, please give us a call.
Smaller than usual numbers due to the stormy weather
November 2024
A smaller contingent this Saturday (23rd November) for the 51st Vigil in Salisbury due almost certainly to the inclement weather with storm Bert raging. The Vigil took place during the week in which the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, the former Defense minister, Yoav Gallant and the leader of Hamas, Mohammed Deif (believed to be dead).
The reaction around the world was mixed with outrage from Israel and from the US who spoke of sanctioning the ICC itself. Other nations are guardedly in support of the actions which are based on a wide range of breaches of International Humanitarian Law. This includes the use of starvation as a weapon of war.
The sympathy that Israel received following the horrific attack on October 7th last year and the seizure of 250 hostages has all but dissipated. Around 44,000 have now died in Gaza with thousands more wounded, some seriously. The so called ‘General’s Plan’ to clear the northern part of the enclave – denied by Israel – seems to be in operation. Independent observers and journalists are denied access so obtaining reliable reports is impossible. Claims of individuals being used as ‘human shields’ cannot be independently verified and little evidence has been produced.
The ICC warrants pose a problem for countries like the UK (but not the US which is not a signatory as is Israel) which are required to stop the supply of weapons. What will happen on this point we shall see.
Among the criticisms made is that lumping the two Israeli people in with Hamas is quite wrong. The problem for the ICC is that if they issued warrants for the Israelis alone, they would be criticised for ignoring Hamas. The same argument applies in the other direction.
There seems no end in sight. The arrival of Donald Trump as the next US President is awaited and Israeli politicians who anticipate more favourable treatment by him in comparison to President Biden. There are still those who think that the current conflict started on 7th October last year – it didn’t. The conflict goes back to at least 1948 and further back than that. Years of apartheid by the Israeli government and the current violent campaign by the ‘settlers’ to clear Palestinians and other Arabs from the West Bank are all part of a prolonged conflict. It even goes back to the British Empire and the desire to protect the Suez Canal and hence the link to India.
It is likely that holding a Vigil on Saturday in Salisbury Market Place was intended to be a short run affair. Most vigils are: people come together to show their support for a cause and it’s over. But on Saturday, we held our 50th Vigil in aid of peace in Gaza. Around 40 attended a number which has remained remarkably constant. New people came as well so it isn’t the same old faces week after week.
Part of the motivation is the continuing horror in Gaza and also, now, Lebanon with reports today of aid workers killed in a bombing. Over 43,000 are now dead in Gaza with 70% women and children the BBC reports.
The 49th Vigil took place in Salisbury yesterday (9th November) and despite being on the cold side, 40 people attended for the half an hour. The Vigil attracted a lot of attention from passers by. There is a short video.Our previous post discussed the situation in Gaza and the recently published UN report. In the post we said that if a response from Israel came to hand we would amend the post as appropriate. Today (10th) there is no mention of the report.
The 48th Vigil for peace in the Middle East took place yesterday and with the change in clocks, we were back to candles. About 40 were in attendance, the strongest turnout for some time. Also, a stronger contingent of young people. It is amazing to note the numbers – which do fluctuate – remain high.
Events in the region show no sign of a let up. Bombing continues in both Gaza and Lebanon. Commentators are reporting that the “General’s Plan” of clearing north Gaza of Palestinians seems to be happening despite denials. Such footage as emerges is shocking. With Unwra to be banned from the area and no other agency with the scale or infrastructure able to take its place, the future looks truly grim. So much now depends on the US election in a few days time. If Trump wins and becomes president in the New Year, then it seems unlikely any pressure will be put on Netanyahu to compromise. The future if Kamala Harris succeeds is less predictable as she has had to moderate her views in the light of the Jewish vote in the US.
More media outlets beginning to refer to Israeli actions as ‘genocide’. It is worth reminding ourselves what genocide is and the UN definition is:
The Genocide Convention establishes in Article I that the crime of genocide may take place in the context of an armed conflict, international or non-international, but also in the context of a peaceful situation. The latter is less common but still possible. The same article establishes the obligation of the contracting parties to prevent and to punish the crime of genocide.
The popular understanding of what constitutes genocide tends to be broader than the content of the norm under international law. Article II of the Genocide Convention contains a narrow definition of the crime of genocide, which includes two main elements:
A mental element: the “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such”; and
A physical element, which includes the following five acts, enumerated exhaustively:
Killing members of the group
Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group
Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part
Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group
Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group
As we have noted before, the issue of intent is important. A number of agencies and organisations have concluded that there is sufficient intent to conclude it is genocide.
The death toll in Gaza is around 43,000. Over 100,000 have been injured. Over 1,200 have been killed in Israel.
The 44th Salisbury peace Vigil continues with around 35 in attendance yesterday (5th October). It is almost a year since the terrible events on 7th October 2023 was the trigger for the current round of violence which seems to be getting worse by the day. Last week, saw a huge barrage of missiles from Iran directed towards Israel. Israel also stepped up its campaign with a ground invasion of Lebanon as well as bombing communities in the south and in Beirut itself. A million or more have been displaced and there have been around 1,500 deaths. Over 41,000 have been killed in Gaza.
After October 7th, there was a wave of international sympathy for Israel. The number killed and the manner of their deaths – some burned alive and others brutally and gleefully murdered – shocked world opinion. As time has gone by and the images of destruction wrought on Gaza, sympathy for Israel has turned to frustration. We have seen footage of building after building being demolished. People are being forced to move time and again. The scale of misery has been shocking. The seemingly indiscriminate nature of the bombing is also shocking. The ‘human shield’ argument has been much used and evidence for it has not been supplied.
Huge numbers of women and children have been killed. Many thousands have received life changing injuries including the loss of limbs. Entire families have been wiped out when blocks of flats have been destroyed. Aid deliveries have been restricted or delayed. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic.
The world looks on powerlessly
And the world has looked on powerlessly. Peace efforts have come to nought. Military aid continues largely unabated. The US, formerly the key player in the region, is looking as feeble as its president. It is a tragedy being played out in real time on our screens. Israel is accused of genocide and ignoring claims that its response is disproportionate.
It seems a long time since talk of a ‘new world order’ and international relations being settled by diplomacy. Israel is in danger of winning battles but ultimately losing the war. They may inflict crippling physical damage on Hamas and Hezbollah due to its huge superiority in military strength, but they cannot crush the ideology. Peace in the area can never be achieved until the Palestinian question is resolved probably through some kind of two state solution. The sad fact is that at the end of this campaign (and when that will be is unpredictable) fundamental issues will remain unresolved. The Palestinians will not have a state: Israel will continue to be surrounded by hostile neighbours.
What is alarming to note is that neither the UN nor USA has been able to secure a peace deal or any kind of enduring settlement. The EU is side lined.
We shall continue our vigil in Salisbury each Saturday at 5 o’clock in the market square. A small gesture perhaps …
The 39th Vigil was held yesterday (31st August) in the market square as usual. Over 30 attended with a scattering of people joining in as they passed. The death toll is over 40,000 and there seems little sign of a peace deal. Efforts last week seem to have come to nought. There has been a short cessation of hostilities to enable the UN to carry out polio vaccinations.
ADDITION: the brutal murder by Hamas of six of the hostages has sent shockwaves around the world and has led to tens of thousands of Israelis to protest over the government’s failure to secure a peace deal and the release of the remaining hostages.
We shall be there again next week starting at 5pm in Salisbury market place next to the Library. All are welcome.
With the death toll in Gaza over 40,000 and no sign of a peace deal, our weekly Vigil continued today – 24th August – with just under 30 in attendance. Some passers by stop and take part which is encouraging. We had one person shout at us from afar. We shall be back on 31st at 5pm as usual.
Three of the participants. Photo: Salisbury Amnesty
Still they continue and just under 40 attended the Vigil in Salisbury on Saturday 17th August. A grim milestone was reached during the week when the Health Ministry announced the death toll in Gaza has passed 40,000 and shows no sign of ending. The Israeli authorities dispute these figures but the evidence suggests they are an underestimate since many thousands are buried and unaccounted for.
Peace talks are taking place in Doha and are being spoken about optimistically by the Americans at least although Hamas are not in attendance. Today’s reports are less optimistic.
There are signs of patience running out in Western capitals and the new Foreign Secretary David Lammy is in Israel with his French counterpart to try and promote some kind of peace initiative. In a joint article in the Observer (August 18th) it is clear both governments are worried by a regional escalation.
It is not clear whether the UK will cease or reduce arms sales to the country but CAAT reported recently (6 August) that there has been no change in the government’s position. Reports that they were rethinking appear to have been premature. The major supplier is the US which is done on a government to government basis.
There has also been a perceptible change in reporting by the BBC, Channel 4 and ITV with more robust interviews and pointed questioning. On Channel 4 for example, in an interview concerning the mounting settler violence in the West Bank where a large group of them were filmed rampaging through a Palestinian village, Matt Frei used the ‘apartheid’ word at least twice. On Radio 4 where and Israeli official was casting doubt over the death statistics in Gaza, the interviewer noted that independent journalists were not allowed in to the territory: clearly the inference was that if you will not permit independent verification, it is hard for you to complain about the statistics.
What is becoming increasingly apparent is the sympathy and shock felt around the world at the horrific attack on October 7th and the continuing plight of the 100 or so hostages held captive in Gaza is diminishing. Claims that it is Hamas terrorists being targeted and killed are also being questioned in the light of vast numbers of dead women and children.
The 36th Vigil took place again this Saturday, 10 August 2024 with just over 30 in attendance. When these Vigils started we did not imagine they would still be going and would attract continued support. This time we were joined by some passers by.
In that connection it is perhaps interesting to comment on the reaction of people walking past. Around 90 or so people took notice of what we were doing and registered (probably) that we were in support of peace in the region and a few took photos. This was around a quarter of those passing by. Many simply did not notice, hurrying home after work or rushing to catch a bus. Some quickly looked away for reasons we cannot know.
The conflict continues and the death toll stands at over 39,000. There seems to be no credible attempts at present to secure a ceasefire.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 