Below is a statement from Sheffield Jews Against Israeli Apartheid, a coalition member.
Sheffield Jews against Israeli Apartheid welcomes the government’s announcement on sanctions against the illegal Israeli settlements on the occupied West Bank.
It is a step in the right direction – if only a small one. We feel it would have been much more powerful if the government also announced it would stop supplying Israel with weapons. The Labour government made it clear it was not attacking Israel – only the illegal settlements.
But it is the Israeli government that is supporting the expansion of the settlements and it is IDF soldiers that often help the settlers force Palestinians off their land. Many in the Israeli government openly say they want to totally take over the entire West bank and Gaza. Just banning settlement goods will not stop the expansion. We need to take action that would affect the Israeli government.
We also strongly object to the fact that the media mainly presents one Jewish opinion. Chief Rabbi Mirvis does not represent all Jews. Why is an alternative Jewish voice never on the news? Miliband himself represents a different Jewish voice although he was attacked for not being Jewish enough. The Chief Rabbi said it is a “dark day for Jews “ as it will give support to anti-semites. What gives fuel to anti-semitism is the conflation of all Jews with Israel’s policies. Mirvis’s comments do not help.
Many, many Jewish people are speaking out against the genocide and are reclaiming what it is to be Jewish in today’s world. Jews have always been on the side of the oppressed – not the oppressor- and we will continue to speak out until there is freedom and equality for all people in Palestine.
Above is a pre-genocide example of the type of help the Israeli Occupation Forces have been lending to armed and violent settlers in thier effort to remove Palestinians from Palestinian land.
