Ali, the MP for Birmingham Hall Green, said: “Is it not time for the prime minister to now admit that he has the blood of thousands of innocent people on his hands and for him to commit to demanding an immediate ceasefire and an ending of UK’s arms trade with Israel.”
In a swipe at Keir Starmer’s claim to have “changed” Labour since Jeremy Corbyn’s time as leader, the PM replied: “That’s the face of the changed Labour Party.”
Three hours later, Ali posted an apology for his remarks on X (formerly Twitter).
HuffPostUK understands that came after a dressing down by Labour’s chief whip, Alan Campbell.
…
(2/2) the Prime Minister in my question.
We all have a responsibility to be respectful in the language that we use, even when discussing difficult and, at times, sensitive issues.
‘What will it take for him to back a permanent, bilateral ceasefire?’
Rishi Sunak faced MPs in parliament today at the latest Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs). He fielded questions from the Labour leader Keir Starmer on the Rwanda scheme and the SNP’s Westminster leader Stephen Flynn on the cost of living crisis.
But one of the most dramatic moments in the exchanges came as a result of a question from Green Party MP Caroline Lucas. She asked Sunak “what will it take for him to back a permanent, bilateral ceasefire?”
Speaking in the House of Commons, Lucas said: “Until the UK government calls for an immediate ceasefire, it is complicit in Gaza. Not my words, but those of the head of Oxfam, who like every single agency trying to operate on the ground is clear: that aid can’t be effectively delivered while fighting continues. More UK aid is, of course, welcome, but even when it does get through, it can result in what one Palestinian aid worker calls ‘bombing us on full stomachs’.
“24,000 people have already been killed. So can he tell us what will it take for him to back a permanent, bilateral ceasefire?”
Hundreds of thousands marched in Washington, DC to demand an immediate ceasefire and protest Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza
Hundreds of thousands marched in Washington DC to protest Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. Photo: Adrian Antonioli / ANSWER Coalition
On January 13, a crowd of 400,000 gathered in Washington, DC’s Freedom Plaza to take the Palestine solidarity movement straight to Biden’s doorstep. Hundreds of thousands then marched, holding Palestinian, Yemeni, South African, and Puerto Rican flags, through DC and straight to the gates of the White House.
The mobilization was organized by the American Muslim Task Force on Palestine, which includes American Muslims for Palestine, Council on American-Islamic Relations, Islamic Circle of North America, Muslim American Society, Muslim Student Association-National, Muslim Legal Fund of America, Muslim Ummah of North America, and Young Muslims, and the ANSWER Coalition.
Frustrated with Biden’s support and bankrolling of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, protesters surrounded the President’s residence and chanted “Hands off Yemen!” and “Yemen, Yemen, make us proud, turn this invasion around!” in reference to the US-UK bombing campaign against Yemen in response to the country’s blockade of Israel-bound ships. Protesters also left bloody baby dolls at the gates of the White House to condemn the genocide in Gaza and the over 10,000 children that have been killed to date. As the crowd demonstrated, several snipers were seen on the roof of the White House.
The hundreds of thousands who showed up in DC were joined by millions across the world who participated in a global day of action in solidarity with Palestine to mark nearly 100 days of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Rallies, strikes, and mass mobilizations were held in major cities of South Africa, Japan, Turkey, the UK, South Korea, Indonesia, Ireland, New Zealand, Ivory Coast, Sweden, Italy, Germany, Austria, Australia, Finland, as well as throughout the United States. Thousands shut down the Port of Oakland in California at 5 am on Saturday morning.
Before marching, the crowd of hundreds of thousands in Freedom Plaza heard from a diverse array of speakers from the US Muslim community and anti-imperialist organizations. “So long as the genocide in Gaza is being funded by this administration,” said Ismahan Abdullahi of the Muslim American Society, “we will not relent in our efforts to demand justice and the liberation of the Palestinian people.”
“Just as South Africa courageously rose to rightfully charge Israel with genocide, we the people of the United States of America will rise and continue these efforts,” she continued.
“You Genocide Joe, you Blinken the butcher, and your Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. You will be haunted by the screams of the children in Gaza,” said Taher Herzallah of American Muslims for Palestine, who, like many other speakers, placed the blame for the ongoing Gaza genocide directly onto the United States government. “You will be haunted by the prayers, the agonizing prayers of the elderly and the women of Gaza. And we, this new generation, will be the answer to their prayers.”
Protesters demanded an end to all US funding of Israel. Photo: Wyatt Souers / ANSWER Coalition
2024 is an election year, and Biden, who is running for reelection, has been hounded by Pro-Palestine demonstrators at several campaign events already. Mainstream media outlets openly worry about Biden’s chances in 2024, with the aging President losing key demographics of Democratic Party support such as young people and Arab-Americans.
“Instead of focusing on the American people, our tax money is being used to spread hatred, to spread warfare, to support criminal activity, frankly speaking, to support a genocide,” Mohamed Sabri, who traveled from Chicago to attend the march in DC, told Peoples Dispatch about why he will not be voting for Biden.
As a result of Biden’s unpopularity, third party candidates running for president in 2024 have gained new prominence. Both Jill Stein and Cornel West, running platforms to the left of the ruling Democratic Party, spoke at the March for Gaza.
Peoples Dispatch spoke to presidential and vice presidential candidates Claudia De La Cruz and Karina Garcia, who were on the ground, marching among the crowd of hundreds of thousands, and are running jointly on an explicitly socialist platform. “We know it’s significantly important for any presidential candidate running for the 2024 election to prioritize the freedom, liberation of Palestine. Anyone who does not do that is standing in support of genocide,” said De La Cruz, the presidential candidate for the Party for Socialism and Liberation.
“Democratic politicians, they like to pay a lot of lip service during the year, especially around domestic issues, and they never want to talk about imperialism, which is at the center, it’s the core of all of the problems faced by the entire world,” added Garcia.
The PSL presidential ticket of Claudia de la Cruz and Karina Garcia participating in the March for Gaza in Washington DC. Photo: Craig Birchfield / ANSWER Coalition
Rabbis hold a peace action at the United Nations Security Council in New York on January 9, 2024. (Photo: Jews for Racial & Economic Justice)
“The U.N. was created in the aftermath of World War II and the Holocaust, with the very intention of ensuring ‘Never Again,'” said Rabbis for Ceasefire. “We are here as Jews, as rabbis, to urge the U.N. to follow through.”
After arriving at the United Nations headquarters on Tuesday, ostensibly for a scheduled tour, three dozen rabbis and rabbinical students made their way into the U.N. Security Council’s chamber to stage the latest high-profile demonstration demanding the United States end its opposition to a cease-fire in Gaza.
The rabbis—whose action was organized by Rabbis for Cease-fire, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, Jewish Voice for Peace, and IfNotNow—displayed banners with messages for U.S. President Joe Biden: “Biden: The World Says Cease-Fire,” and “Biden: Stop Vetoing Peace.”
The protest came weeks after the U.S. alone vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution calling for Israel to end its bombardment of Gaza, which has killed at least 23,210 people, injured more than 59,100, and left thousands more missing and feared dead under rubble, as the population of the enclave faces starvation and disease stemming from Israel’s blockade.
“[President Joe] Biden and the U.S. must stop vetoing peace and end Israel’s bombing and starvation of Gaza,” said IfNotNow.
WOW. 36 rabbis led by @rodfeishalom just held a prayerful sit-in at the @UN Security Council to remind President Biden that the whole world demands a permanent #CeasefireNOW.
In addition to vetoing the Security Council measure last month, the U.S. abstained from voting on a resolution to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza and opposed a U.N. General Assembly resolution calling for a cease-fire.
The country’s isolated stance was starkly illustrated by the latter vote, with 153 nations supporting the cease-fire, including longtime U.S. allies like Canada, France, and Spain backing the resolution, and only nine countries joining the United States.
“Since the Biden administration is consistently, single-handedly blocking the U.N. from taking any meaningful action for a cease-fire, we are organizing 36 rabbis and rabbinical students from seven different states to come to the U.N. themselves, and say, ‘We’re speaking for the people, this is a moral call,'” Sophie Ellman-Golan, communications director for Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, told HuffPost.
Organizers said at a press conference after the protesters were escorted out of the building that six of the rabbis had gained access to the U.N. General Assembly floor, where they displayed one of the banners to the assembled leaders.
Members of Rabbis for Ceasefire brought our message to the @UN General Assembly to tell the U.S. to stop vetoing peace. Ceasefire now! pic.twitter.com/No21j1CeSL
HuffPost reported that one of the rabbis signaled the beginning of the protest during the tour by blowing into a traditional shofar horn, while Rabbis for Cease-fire founder and lead organizer Alissa Wise quoted the biblical Book of Isaiah.
“They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks,” said Wise. “Nation shall not lift up swords against nation. Neither shall they learn war anymore.”
Video from inside the U.N. Security Council Chamber this morning shows the beginning of a Rabbis for Ceasefire protest calling on the U.S. & int'l community to stop the Israeli military operation in Gaza. The men in suits are surprised U.N. tour guides. pic.twitter.com/egZyKsxuXs
The groups called on the U.S. and all U.N. members to:
Reaffirm and recommit to the goals of the United Nations Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, taking meaningful action to stop the slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza;
Hold another Security Council vote to pass a resolution for cease-fire that includes lifting the siege and hostage exchange; and
Bring to the General Assembly a resolution calling for appropriate accountability measures in line with international law, including an immediate arms embargo.
“The U.N. was created in the aftermath of World War II and the Holocaust, with the very intention of ensuring ‘Never Again,'” said Rabbis for Cease-fire. “We are here as Jews, as rabbis, to urge the U.N. to follow through on this noble mission. Never again means never again for any of us.”
5/5 @UN General Assembly already voted with an overwhelming majority for Ceasefire. But the @USUN is thwarting the efforts of the Security Council to take meantingful action for a ceasefire. The US is standing in the way of the international community taking action to save lives.
An organizer said as the rabbis assembled that “the U.N. is the appropriate place for meaningful action for cease-fire and accountability for Israel’s war crimes.”
The demonstration came two days before the International Court of Justice, the U.N.’s top judicial body, is set to hold a hearing on South Africa’s lawsuit claiming Israel has committed acts of genocide in Gaza. Turkey, Malaysia, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation have all expressed support for South Africa’s claim, while Jordan indicated last week it had filed documents to submit a Declaration of Intervention at the court, backing the lawsuit.
More than 900 worldwide civil society groups have joined a call for other governments to submit Declarations of Intervention to bolster South Africa’s case.
The Biden administration said Tuesday that South Africa’s case is “meritless,” despite the country’s detailed, 84-page complaint highlighting specific calls from Israeli officials to wipe out the population of Gaza and force them to leave the enclave.
“The U.S.,” said Rabbis for Cease-fire, “is standing in the way of the international community taking action to save lives.”
Protesters block the Holland Tunnel on Monday, January 8, in New York City to call for a cease-fire in Gaza. (Photo credit: Alexa Wilkinson)
“We are trying to show how it feels to be trapped in a city you can’t leave,” one participant said.
Protesters blocked the Holland Tunnel and three major New York City bridges during Monday’s rush hour to call for a cease-fire in Gaza as Israel’s deadly assault on the besieged enclave enters its fourth month.
Organizers said that they chose to block traffic in order to create a “physical analogue” to the experience of people in Gaza, “where there is no getting out.”
“We are trying to show how it feels to be trapped in a city you can’t leave,” 30-year-old participant Mon Mohapatra told The New York Times.
“We salute the brave individuals and organizations who across the country and the world are taking action to disrupt the flow of capital, by blocking ports and traffic arteries.”
Organizers said in a statement that a thousand people blocked traffic Monday morning for more than two hours at the Holland Tunnel and Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Williamsburg bridges. The action was coordinated by a coalition of groups including the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), Al-Awda: The Palestine Right to Return Coalition, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), Critical Resistance, and Writers Against the War on Gaza (WAWOG).
The action at the Holland Tunnel began around 9:30 am ET, the Port Authority Police Department toldCBS News. The department arrested 120 people for blocking the outbound lane. The New York Police Department’s chief of patrol toldWABC that 325 people were arrested across all four locations.
The organizers said that their actions snarled traffic in SoHo, Tribeca, Hudson Square, the Financial District, and the Lower East Side. Traffic began moving again around the Holland Tunnel by 10:30 am, over the Brooklyn Bridge a little before 11:00 am, and over the Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges a little before 11:30 am, WABC reported.
Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Holland Tunnel, and Williamsburg Bridge were all SHUT DOWN by a coalition of organizers, bringing New York City traffic to a halt.
The People demand a ceasefire now, an end to US “aid” to Israel, and an immediate lifting of the siege on Gaza! pic.twitter.com/0ksv3nE57x
— Palestinian Youth Movement (@palyouthmvmt) January 8, 2024
“In Gaza, of course, people have limited mobility, no freedom of movement, they cannot leave, even if they want to, they move place to place, then those places are bombed,” Rachel Himes, who was arrested at the Holland Tunnel, told The New York Times. “We wanted to create that condition temporarily in Manhattan.”
The action was planned to coincide with the start of the fourth month of Israel’s attack on Gaza, which has killed more than 23,000 people and injured nearly 59,000 since October 7, according to Monday figures from the Gaza Health Ministry.
Demonstrators at all four Manhattan locations dropped banners listing the five demands of the Palestinian Youth Movement:
An immediate cease-fire;
An end to the siege on Gaza;
The release of all Palestinian prisoners;
An end to the occupation of Palestine; and
An end to U.S. aid to Israel.
Ceasefire is the beginning. These are our demands, as set forth by the @palyouthmvmt. Lift the siege. Free all the Palestinian prisoners. End the occupation. NOW!!! pic.twitter.com/bWyLe2Vg1u
— Writers Against the War on Gaza (@wawog_now) January 8, 2024
Demonstrators at the Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges used piping and chains to bolster their blockades, which police had to saw through to clear the protesters, according to The New York Times and CBS. Police “violently assaulted” one participant at the Williamsburg Bridge, according to a video shared by WAWOG on social media.
Cops violently assaulted a pro-Palestine protester at the blockade of the Williamsburg Bridge earlier today. This is what we mean when we say NYPD, KKK, IDF: THEY’RE ALL THE SAME!
— Writers Against the War on Gaza (@wawog_now) January 8, 2024
Monday’s protest builds on months of direct actions both in New York and across the country as protesters have blocked traffic, sat in at train stations, disrupted political events, and blocked ports to call on President Joe Biden to end U.S. support for Israel’s bombardment and invasion of Gaza.
On Saturday, a group of protesters blocked traffic on Seattle’s I-5 highway for more than four hours.
“These direct actions that we are seeing now are tools of protest that intend to disrupt the flow of capital and hit the political and economic elites where it hurts, in order to force an end to the ongoing genocide of Palestinians and siege on Gaza,” Bissan Barghouti of Samidoun Seattle, who helped organize a rally in solidarity with the highway blockade, told Common Dreams. “As Palestinians and those in solidarity with our struggle, we condemn the government and corporate complicity in the massacre of our loved ones in Gaza and across occupied Palestine.”
Barghouti added, “We salute the brave individuals and organizations who across the country and the world are taking action to disrupt the flow of capital, by blocking ports and traffic arteries.”
In addition to more recent protests, Monday’s New York action took its inspiration from a 1995 ACT UP protest that was the first to block two bridges and two tunnels in New York at the same time.
“We urge other coalitions, collectives, and autonomous organizations to take meaningful action against the genocidal state, its collaborators, its benefactors, and profiteers,” the group behind Monday’s New York protest said in a statement. “Protests and demonstrations across the so-called U.S. must escalate in their willingness to shut down business as usual and arrest the flow of capital in order to end this occupation once and for all. Our skills and goals must be aligned towards an immediate and permanent cease-fire, the end of Zionism, and a free Palestine in our lifetimes.”
