I am a little late this month in writing this update due to domestic issues, my apologies.
In the last few weeks events in Palestine and Israel have dropped out of the headlines in most of our media. However, that does not mean that peace has descended on the area, far from it. The plight of Gazans worsens day by day under relentless pressure of attacks from both the IDF and Hamas. The continuing attacks by the Settler Terrorists (protected and often aided by the IDF and Border Police) on Palestinian farmers and villages on the West Bank (and I must also mention the bravery of those villagers and the Israeli Protective Presence Teams who volunteer to try to defend the Palestinians), the war in Lebanon that drags on and on, the on-going attacks on civil and human rights inside Israel, as well as across Palestine, all deserve better coverage in our media than they get.
Another event that deserves better coverage has been the local elections across Palestine, including in Deir Al-Balah in Gaza where the Hamas backed list did not do very well. Yes, there are still many problems in getting Palestine to be fully democratic (not least the Occupation), but this is a welcome step.
As I am writing this, I am getting news that it looks like Israel will also be having elections to the Knesset sooner than expected. The two Ultra-Religious Parties (United Torah Judaism and Shas) have got fed up with Netanyahu’s continued prevarication on advancing a Bill to exempt student at Yeshivas (Jewish Religious Seminaries) linked to them from being drafted into the IDF (as most other Jewish Israelis are) and have pulled out of supporting the Government Coalition. They have also tabled Bills to dissolve the Knesset and hold elections in September.
As the sister party of the Lib Dems, Yesh Atid, has amalgamated with the proto-Party led by Naftali Bennett (who left Likud after falling out with Netanyahu) to form Together. I am less hopeful than I was that the next Israeli Government will be better at working with Palestinians to find a way to resolve the conflict, even if they may well be more pragmatic and, hopefully, no longer allow the Settler Terrorist to continue to rampage through the West Bank. I hope The Democrats do well and become a strong voice in any future Coalition. However, looking at recent opinion polls , it looks like any anti-Netanyahu Coalition will need the support of the Arab Joint List but Bennet might instead chose to go into coalition with Netanyahu and Yashar another new centre-right party led by a former General. Gadi Eisenkot.
As the election approaches, I expect to see lots of horse trading between parties (and leaders) and even new amalgamations and alliances as they all try to ensure they stay in power or gain office.
Here in the UK, the recent antisemitic and Islamophobic attacks in London and elsewhere, linked to the Palestine-Israel conflict but often committed by those with no direct involvement, are very worrying. Jews and Muslims living in the UK deserve to go about their lives without the threat of being attacked because of a conflict in the Middle East which they have no control over. As a Party, and as a group within our Party, we must stand up and make our voice heard against this hatred based on race or religion, wherever it occurs.
We also need to stand up against censorship in our media where voices from either side are ignored or stopped from being heard. We need to hear from all points of view on both sides so all of us can understand that there is no monolithic block in either nation but a wide range of views and opinions, some for co-existence and peace, and some for ethnic cleansing of those from the other side.
Palestine is not Hamas, Israel is not Netanyahu’s Government, and if we are to help Palestinians and Israelis find a way forward we need to be ready to hear all voices from both side, to support the peacemakers on both sides, to work with those who accept that both deserve to live and thrive between the Sea and the River. We who live thousands of miles from the area cannot impose solutions that we construct from afar. Our role must be to help those who live there to work together to create a lasting solution.