An Aviva shareholder is bundled out of the insurer’s AGM after joining 11 others in a protest against the firm’s ‘propping up’ of fossil fuel companies, benefiting from the genocide in Gaza and abuse of migrants in detention
TWELVE Aviva shareholders disrupted the insurer’s AGM today, urging it to stop “propping up companies involved in fossil fuel extraction, the genocide in Gaza and abuse of migrants in detention.”
Activists from Boycott Bloody Insurance blocked access to the company’s board room in a protest against it underwriting and investing in a number of companies, including Serco, Saudi Aramco and Elbit Systems.
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Boycott Bloody Insurance campaigner Andrew Taylor added: “Aviva insures and invests in companies causing death and destruction across the world.
“We are here today to demand that they end their support for genocide, climate breakdown and the abuse of migrants.
“Our research into the UK insurance market shows that Aviva insures more migrant detention and surveillance contractors than any other company, underwrites oil majors such as Saudi Aramco, and invests billions in fossil fuel and weapons companies.
“Aviva is enabling companies to profiteer from the abuse of migrants. Private companies are raking in millions while subjecting people fleeing war and persecution to cruel and dangerous conditions.
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An aerial view from Sheikh Ridwan in Gaza City, Gaza, shows the heavy destruction left behind after the Israeli army withdraws following a ceasefire agreement, on October 25, 2025. [Mahmoud Abu Hamda – Anadolu Agency]
Israel is preparing to spend nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars on its propaganda apparatus, in a sign of growing alarm in Tel Aviv over its collapse in global standing following the genocide in Gaza and expanding wars across the region.
According to The Jerusalem Post, Israel’s public diplomacy budget, known in Hebrew as hasbara, has risen to $730 million, more than four times the $150 million allocated the previous year. That earlier sum was itself reportedly around 20 times higher than Israel’s pre-2023 spending on such efforts.
The vast increase was included in Israel’s national budget passed in March and will be directed through the national public diplomacy directorate, which oversees efforts to shape foreign public opinion.
The surge in propaganda spending comes as Israel is increasingly seen by critics and human rights organisations as a pariah state.
The budget increase appears to reflect Israeli fears that the country’s ability to rely on Western political cover may be weakening. This is particularly true in the US, Israel’s most important ally and arms supplier, where public support has fallen sharply.
A Pew Research Center poll published in April found that 60 per cent of US adults now hold an unfavourable view of Israel, up from 53 per cent last year and nearly 20 points higher than in 2022. Only 37 per cent view Israel favourably.
The shift cuts across important sections of US society. Pew found that 80 per cent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents now view Israel unfavourably, while 57 per cent of Republicans under 50 also hold a negative view.
Gallup has recorded a similar trend. Its February survey found that American sympathy is no longer clearly with Israel, with 41 per cent saying they sympathise more with Palestinians and 36 per cent with Israelis. Gallup said Israel’s favourable rating had fallen close to its historical low, while ratings of the Palestinian Territories had reached a new high.
The crisis has triggered open concern inside Israel’s own policy establishment. The Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv has warned of a “deepening crisis” in Israel’s standing in the US, pointing to declining support among younger Americans, Democrats, younger Republicans and parts of the Jewish community.
A separate report cited growing diplomatic and public opinion isolation and warned of a “creeping economic boycott”, as businesses, academic institutions and civil society organisations become more reluctant to maintain ties with Israel.
Israel’s foreign ministry has responded by expanding its messaging machinery. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has overseen the creation of a dedicated unit to shape international narratives, while funds have reportedly been channelled into digital campaigns, foreign delegations, influencer outreach and pro-Israel advocacy networks.
Reports have also pointed to a centralised “media war room” tracking coverage of Israel across hundreds of outlets and monitoring thousands of daily references. Additional spending has reportedly been directed towards evangelical networks, private public relations firms and campaigns aimed at universities, influencers and young audiences.
The scale of the spending suggests that Israel views its deteriorating image not merely as a public relations problem, but as a strategic threat. Israel’s military dominance has long depended on the political, diplomatic and military support of Western governments, especially Washington. If Western publics increasingly view Israel as a genocidal, apartheid and expansionist state, sustaining unconditional support becomes harder for elected leaders.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/Orcas discuss how Trump was re-elected and him being an obviously insane, xenophobic Fascist.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
A woman surveys the damage to her home that was destroyed by an Israeli air-strike that killed seven of her neighbors in Nabatieh on the second day of a cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon, on April 18, 2026, in Nabatieh, Lebanon. (Photo by Ryan Murphy/Getty Images)
UN experts have said Israel’s “destruction of urban and village housing that displaced persons would have returned to, is consistent with the pattern of domicide that was initiated during the genocide in Gaza.”
Despite a ceasefire announced Friday, after US President Donald Trump said Israel was “PROHIBITED” from continuing to strike Lebanon, Israel continued to level villages and homes across southern Lebanon from Friday into Saturday in what has been described as a continuation of its “Gaza tactics.”
Just as it did in Gaza, Israeli Army Radio announced Friday night that Israel had established a “yellow line” in southern Lebanon about 10 kilometers north of the Israeli border, effectively allowing Israel to occupy about 10% of Lebanese territory and maintain control of 55 towns and villages.
According to a report by Lebanon’s National Council for Scientific Research, Israeli forces have been destroying more than 1,000 homes per day since March 2, sometimes wiping out entire villages across southern Lebanon.
The campaign escalated later in the month after Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to “accelerate the destruction of Lebanese homes” near the Israeli border based on the “model in Gaza,” where Israel has destroyed around 90% of all infrastructure and left most of the population sheltering in tents.
The Israeli army announced on Saturday the establishment of a “yellow line” in South Lebanon, in replication of the Gaza model.
The line separates 55 occupied southern villages from the rest of Lebanon, and stretches from Naqoura to eastern Lebanon, at 8 to 10 kilometers deep… pic.twitter.com/R38rhcCitr
— Megaphone News English (@MegaphoneNewsEN) April 18, 2026
Israel has described this as an effort to destroy Hezbollah infrastructure. But the razing of entire villages has often appeared indiscriminate, and numerous attacks have targeted or damaged schools, hospitals, and other nonmilitary infrastructure. More than 40,000 homes have reportedly been destroyed or damaged.
Demolitions and land-clearing operations have continued after Friday’s ceasefire, according to reporters on the ground in Lebanon for Al Jazeera. Israeli artillery also reportedly shelled areas around Beit Lif, al-Qantara, and Toul.
On Friday, Israel warned tens of thousands of displaced Lebanese civilians in southern Lebanon not to return to their homes despite the ceasefire, although some have begun to make the trek anyway. Many have found their former homes reduced to rubble.
“There’s destruction, and it’s unlivable,” said one resident who was displaced from his home in Nabatieh. “We’re taking our things and leaving again.”
IDF: Since the ceasefire came into effect, IDF soldiers south of the Yellow Line in southern Lebanon have identified in several incidents in which terrorists violated the ceasefire understandings by approaching from north of the Yellow Line toward IDF soldiers, posing an…
Israel said Saturday that it had also carried out new airstrikes in southern Lebanon against people who approached the newly established yellow line. The Israeli military claimed that individuals crossed from north of the line toward Israeli troops, prompting “precise strikes” by air and ground forces against them.
An Israeli military statement described those approaching as “terrorists” who violated the ceasefire and said it carried out the strikes in “self-defense against threats.” However, it did not specify what threat those approaching the line posed.
Previous attacks that Israel has said were directed at Hezbollah fighters have devastated civilian areas in southern Lebanon, as well as Beirut and its surrounding suburbs.
According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between military and civilian casualties, more than 2,167 people have been killed since Israel renewed its attacks in Lebanon on March 2.
In Gaza, despite a ceasefire, nearly 100 Palestinians have been killed near the yellow line since it was established in October 2025. Those killed have included at least 36 women, children, and elderly people, according to TRT World.
Displaced Lebanese residents make their way home, passing ongoing repair work at the Qasmiyeh Bridge over the Litani River in southern Lebanon, after it was damaged in previous Israeli strikes, on April 17, 2026.
On Wednesday, a group of United Nations experts denounced what they called Israel’s “illegal aggression and indiscriminate bombing campaign” aimed at occupying land in violation of the UN Charter.
“The issuance of blanket evacuation orders, combined with the destruction of urban and village housing that displaced persons would have returned to, is consistent with the pattern of domicide that was initiated during the genocide in Gaza,” they warned.
On Saturday, a group of peacekeepers with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon also came under attack, resulting in the death of a French soldier. Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and pledged to identify the “perpetrators.”
UN peacekeepers and French officials have said the attack was most likely carried out by Hezbollah, but Hezbollah has denied responsibility.
Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon also threaten to derail not only its ceasefire with Lebanon but also the US ceasefire with Iran.
After the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon on Friday, Iran briefly reopened the Strait of Hormuz to unrestricted travel. But on Saturday, following reports of Israel’s violations of the ceasefire, it was once again closed.
While Iranian officials said the proximate reason for the closure was the continuation of US President Donald Trump’s blockade of the strait, they have also indicated that they want Israel to stop attacking Lebanon as part of the ceasefire.
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/UK Labour Party government ministers Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Rachel Reeves explain that they are partners complicit in Israel’s Gaza genocide. The UK has provided Israel with arms, military and air force support. They explain that they don’t do gas chambers but do do forced marches, starvation, destroy hospitals, mass-murders of journalists and healthcare workers.Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.
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Protesters called for “an end to the occupation and a halt to arms sales to Israel” during the national march organized in London by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in London, United Kingdom on November 29, 2025. [Raşid Necati Aslım – Anadolu Agency]
A senior Labour Member of Parliament has led a cross-party push for the UK to impose comprehensive sanctions on Israel, citing concerns about military actions in the Gaza Strip and the potential annexation of the West Bank, Anadolu reports.
Richard Burgon, the MP for Leeds East, announced more than 60 parliamentarians have formally backed a parliamentary motion demanding a significant shift in diplomatic and economic policy.
“After the genocide in Gaza, the Israeli government is moving to annex the West Bank. Only sanctions – on arms, trade, the economy & Israeli officials – can stop these war crimes,” he wrote Tuesday on social media.
The motion references a statement backed by 85 UN member states, including the UK, opposing the “de facto annexation of the West Bank” as a violation of international law.
It noted the July 2024 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which found Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is unlawful and must end “as rapidly as possible,” and all new settlement activity must cease.
The text adds that the court made clear that all states, including the UK, must not recognize the situation as lawful and must refrain from any aid or assistance that maintains it, as well as take steps to prevent economic or trade activity that entrenches it.
The motion also notes that the UK imposed widespread sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, but similar measures have not been taken in response to Israel’s reported war crimes and repeated violations of international law.
It urges the government to meet its legal obligations following the ICJ opinion by banning trade and investment in goods and services linked to illegal Israeli settlements.
Violence in the West Bank has escalated since the start of the war in Gaza on Oct. 8, 2023, with Israeli forces and illegal Israeli settlers carrying out attacks that include killings, arrests, property destruction, home demolitions, displacement and settlement expansion.
The attacks have killed at least 1,121 Palestinians and injured 11,700, in addition to the arrest of nearly 22,000 Palestinians.
Palestinians warn that the violations could pave the way for Israel to formally annex the West Bank, effectively ending the possibility of establishing a Palestinian state as envisioned in UN resolutions.
The international community and the UN consider the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, an occupied Palestinian territory and view Israeli settlements there as illegal under international law.
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Keir Starmer explains that UK is participating defensively in Trump and Israel’s criminal war for Israel’s genocidal expansion in Iran and states that he supports Zionism “without qualification”.Orcas discuss rotting brain. Front Orca says “Wish someone would lock him up”.Donald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.
Swiss singer Nemo, winner of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest, is returning trophy in protest at Israel’s inclusion in next year’s competition, deepening the controversy surrounding the European Broadcasting Union’s (EBU) refusal to suspend the Apartheid State over its genocide in Gaza
Swiss singer Nemo, winner of the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest, is returning trophy in protest at Israel’s inclusion in next year’s competition, deepening the controversy surrounding the European Broadcasting Union’s (EBU) refusal to suspend the Apartheid State over its genocide in Gaza.
In a powerful statement shared on Instagram, Nemo said there was a “clear conflict” between Eurovision’s stated ideals of unity, inclusion and dignity for all, and its decision to allow a state accused of committing atrocities to take part.
“This is not about individuals or artists,” Nemo wrote. “The contest was repeatedly used to soften the image of a state accused of severe wrongdoing, all while the EBU insisted Eurovision is ‘non-political’. When entire countries withdraw over this contradiction, it should be clear that something is deeply wrong.”
The 26-year-old artist added that they no longer felt the trophy belonged on the shelf, and would send it back to the EBU’s headquarters in Geneva.
Nemo’s protest comes amid growing backlash over Israel’s participation in Eurovision 2026, due to be held in six months. Iceland’s national broadcaster, RÚV, became the latest to join the boycott, following decisions by Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Slovenia to withdraw.
Critics have condemned the EBU’s insistence that the contest is “non-political,” accusing the organisation of hypocrisy for allowing Israel to remain while Palestinian civilians endure mass displacement, starvation, and military bombardment. The Union also banned Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
“We’re saddened that Nemo wishes to return their trophy which they deservedly won in 2024. We respect the deeply held views Nemo has expressed and they will always remain a valued part of the Eurovision family.”
Israel’s public broadcaster Kan welcomed the EBU’s decision to retain Israel in the contest, while Israeli President Isaac Herzog insisted that Israel “deserves to be represented on every stage around the world.”
However, backlash continues to mount across Europe. In the UK, the BBC has yet to confirm its participation, saying only that it supports decisions made at the EBU summit.
As of now, 34 countries are still expected to take part, but that number may change, with some nations yet to confirm their participation.
Orcas discuss Genocide-supporting and complicit Zionists. Donald Trump, Keith Starmer, David Lammy, Rachel Reeves, Angela Rayner and Wes Streeting are acknowledged as evil genocide-complicit and supporting cnuts.Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.Vote Labour for Genocide.
An Aviva shareholder is bundled out of the insurer’s AGM after joining 11 others in a protest against the firm’s ‘propping up’ of fossil fuel companies, benefiting from the genocide in Gaza and abuse of migrants in detention
