Jaber Jehad Badwan
This is a featured picture on the Arabic language Wikipedia (صور مختارة) and is considered one of the finest images. See its nomination here.Dear Editor,
The climate issue is at last getting full debate with, sometimes, mention of the essential twin topic of social justice included in the push for climate action. It’s essential for richer citizens to purchase EVs or air source heat pumps, but 14 million of our neighbours and 31 per cent of kids facing a daily fight for the basics cannot respond in the present. We will have to wait for the struggling Labour Government to find time to develop tax policies that do more to humanise our society. Is it right that the CEOs of the “top” 100 companies in the UK get, on average, 113x the pay of the average UK worker?
Another battle for justice that can be undertaken in the short term focuses on the horror that is Gaza (and the West Bank also part of Palestine). The Israeli Finance Minister, B. Smotrich, insisted recently that Israel should “conquer and cleanse Gaza..no water, no electricity; they can die of hunger or surrender”. Shouldn’t the sixth richest nation in the world, which until recently had a relatively clear voice on global morality, make a strong contribution to the attempt to stop what is becoming the worst global example of human inhumanity to human?
At present, many UK citizens feel deep despair over the methods used by the nation that experienced the holocaust in “dealing” with the problem of weaker people attempting to share the “Holy Land”. Concerned individuals have taken to sit-down protests in London, rejecting the policy of Number 10 in declaring Palestine Action a terrorist group.
Are the demonstrators, often older people, using their energies wisely? Our police forces are over-worked and, on a personal level, often exhausted. It is clear to most of us that other crimes (scams, domestic and street violence, theft) desperately need more police attention. Some of the demonstrators face trial and imprisonment. Our courts are vastly over-worked with crimes like rape (with such horrendous psychological effects on the victims) taking years to be judged. Our prisons are overcrowded beyond measure and in some cases facing chaos and gang warfare.
The Palestine demonstrators should change their target and by doing so achieve some slight decrease of pressure on the police, courts and prisons.
The targets should surely be Israel’s participation in Eurovision ’26 and the mens’ football World Cup. Slovenia, Iceland, Spain Ireland and the Netherlands have already withdrawn from Eurovision unless Israel is banned . Surely witnessing the softer emotions and creativity expressed in music would underline for us all the disparity between the constructive use of energy, that might fill our screens next May, and the energy that is unleashed on a daily basis against the broken humans who “live” in Gaza?
If the UK threatened to withdraw, other countries would follow. The struggling Israeli political opposition would gain more support from other citizens currently fence-sitting, and the criminal Netanyahu government might at last be replaced.
Halting the destruction of the Gazan population would also prevent giving Trump a chance to build his “riviera of the Middle East”, intended to be a holiday centre that would bring in much more immoral money to his family and show what a “magnificent leader” Donald is. Anything to reduce “success” for the president, destroyer of worlds, is positive.
For the World Cup – why should a small number of Israeli males be allowed to “dance” on a world stage while their brothers are being encouraged by their government to shoot kids and adults queuing for food? Exclusion is the answer.
Such actions are not anti-semitic. They are anti-Zionist and would reinforce pressure on Netanyahu, already facing multiple trials in Israel for corruption and accusation by the International Criminal Court for crimes in Gaza. Netanyahu, unbelievably, keeps the war going solely to remain in power by avoiding an election. Discussion on these valid courses of action, signing petitions (that if big enough, have to be debated in parliament), persuading our MPs – it’s up to us. Or do we sleep cosily at night and let Israel show off next summer?
Jeremy Hall,
Exeter
