Members of UK Jewish group to appeal punishments for Gaza war criticisms
LONDON: Dozens of representatives of the main organization representing Jews in the UK are appealing against disciplinary action taken against them after they criticized Israel's war on Gaza.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews this week sanctioned 36 of its representatives after they signed a letter in April in which they said they could 'no longer remain silent' over the loss of life in Gaza. The board suspended five of the deputies for two years and reprimanded the remaining 31 for breaching its code of conduct.
The reprimanded members said on Thursday they would appeal against the decision, and continued to voice concerns about the conflict, The Guardian newspaper reported.
In a group statement, they said they 'remain deeply concerned about the remaining hostages, the appalling humanitarian crisis and ongoing war in Gaza and the further deteriorating situation in the West Bank.'
They added that they stand in solidarity with the majority of Israelis who want an immediate end to the war in Gaza, and there was 'no justification for the continuing misery and destruction being wrought on Gazan civilians.'
When it announced the punishments on Tuesday, the Board of Deputies said the letter was 'neither authorized by the board nor did the signatories share it with the organization before sending to the Financial Times.' It had received various complaints about the letter and the media coverage that followed, it added.
The five signatories suspended for two years were removed from any elected positions they held. They were handed more severe punishments than the others because they had 'contributed to the misleading press release,' the board said, and made public statements relating to the letter.
The remaining 31 deputies who signed the letter but did not promote it received a 'notice of criticism' and were warned they would face suspension if they were involved in any similar incidents.
One of the five suspended members, Harriett Goldenberg, was vice chair of the board's international division.
She told The Guardian: 'So many Jews in the UK agreed with our sadly groundbreaking letter. We were inundated with thanks from those who said we represented them, and that we were their voice. It is tragic that voice is still needed.'
The Board of Deputies is the largest representative body for Jews in the UK, with 300 deputies who are elected by synagogues and communal organizations.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
After NATO deal, how far will EU go for trade peace with Trump?
BRUSSELS, Belgium: After satisfying Donald Trump's calls for Europe to ramp up defense spending in NATO, EU leaders in Brussels turned Thursday to the next big challenge ahead: how to seal a trade deal with the US leader. Time is running out. The European Union has until July 9 to reach a deal or see swingeing tariffs kick in on a majority of goods, unleashing economic pain. The European Commission, in charge of EU trade policy, has been in talks with Washington for weeks, and the leaders of Europe's two biggest economies France and Germany on Thursday urged Brussels to move fast in search of a deal. 'France is in favor of reaching a quick agreement, we don't want it to drag on forever,' President Emmanuel Macron told reporters after summit talks involving the bloc's 27 leaders and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. While Macron said European nations 'do not want a deal at any cost,' Germany's chancellor has signalled he wants to close a deal fast — even if it means an unbalanced outcome with some level of US tariffs on EU goods. 'It's better to act quickly and simply than slowly and in a highly complicated way,' Friedrich Merz told a press conference after the talks. The EU has put a zero-percent tariff proposal on the table — but it's widely seen as a non-starter in talks with Washington. Von der Leyen said the commission had just received the latest US counterproposal, adding: 'We are assessing it as we write, speak right now.' 'Swiss cheese' option According to several diplomats, the goal at this point is rather to let Trump claim victory without agreeing a deal that would significantly hurt Europe. One diplomat suggested leaders would be happy with a 'Swiss cheese' agreement — with a general US levy on European imports, but enough loopholes to shield key sectors such as steel, automobiles, pharmaceuticals and aeronautics. This would be less painful than the status quo with European companies currently facing 25-percent tariffs on steel, aluminum and auto goods exported to the United States, and 10 percent on a majority of EU products. Merz had earlier this week taken aim at the EU's approach to talks as overly complicated, urging 'rapid, joint decisions for four or five major industries now.' The issue was the focus of Thursday's summit dinner, at which von der Leyen was able to test leaders' red lines in negotiations. If no agreement is reached, the default tariff on EU imports is expected to double to 20 percent or even higher — Trump having at one point threatened 50 percent. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday suggested the administration could extend the July deadline but said 'that's a decision for the president to make.' Avoiding escalation Unlike Canada or China, which hit back swiftly at Trump's tariff hikes, the EU has consistently sought to negotiate with the US leader — threatening retaliation only if no agreement is reached. 'We will not allow ourselves to be provoked, we will remain calm,' said Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, urging the EU to avert an all-out trade war with Washington. Talks between EU and US negotiators have intensified in recent weeks. Trump divides the Europeans. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are both vocally supportive of Trump — while others are more wary. 'The problem is that on behalf of the United States, we have a heavyweight dealmaker — on our side, European Union, have light capacity and capability leaders to negotiate,' said Orban. Pro-trade countries in Europe's north are especially keen to avoid an escalation. The EU has threatened to slap tariffs on US goods worth around 100 billion euros, including cars and planes, if talks fail to yield an agreement — but has not made any mention of those threats since May. The United States is also using the negotiations to try to extract concessions on EU rules — particularly digital competition, content and AI regulations, which Washington claims unfairly target American champions such as Apple, Google, and Meta. Europeans are ready to discuss common transatlantic standards, but the EU's digital rules are a red line for Brussels.
Asharq Al-Awsat
6 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
US State Department Approves $30 Million in Funding for Gaza Humanitarian Foundation
The US State Department has approved $30 million in funding for the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the State Department said on Thursday, calling on other countries to also support the controversial group delivering aid in war-torn Gaza. "This support is simply the latest iteration of President Trump's and Secretary Rubio's pursuit of peace in the region," State Department deputy spokesperson Tommy Pigott told reporters at a regular news briefing. Reuters was first to report the move earlier this week. Washington has long backed the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation diplomatically, but this is the first known US government financial contribution to the organization, which uses private for-profit US military and logistics firms to transport aid into the Palestinian enclave for distribution at so-called secure sites. Since Israel lifted an 11-week aid blockade on Gaza on May 19, allowing limited UN deliveries to resume, the United Nations says more than 400 Palestinians have been killed seeking aid from both the UN and GHF operations. Earlier this month, GHF halted aid deliveries for a day as it pressed Israel to boost civilian safety near its distribution sites after dozens of Palestinians seeking aid were killed. It says there have been no incidents at its sites. The foundation's executive director, Johnnie Moore, an evangelical preacher who was a White House adviser in the first Trump administration, said in a post on X on Thursday that the group has delivered more than 46 million meals to Gazans since it began its operations in May. Some US officials opposed giving any US funds to the foundation over concerns about violence near aid distribution sites, the GHF's inexperience and the involvement of the for-profit US logistics and private military firms, four sources told Reuters earlier this week. The United States could approve additional monthly grants of $30 million for the GHF, two sources said, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity. In approving the US funding for the GHF, the sources said the State Department exempted the foundation, which has not publicly disclosed its finances, from an audit usually required for groups receiving USAID grants for the first time. There is an acute shortage of food and other basic supplies after the nearly two-year military campaign by Israel that has displaced most of Gaza's two million inhabitants.
Arab News
8 hours ago
- Arab News
Ukraine, Russia exchange another group of POWs
CHERNIGIV REGION, Ukraine: Ukraine and Russia exchanged a new group of captured soldiers on Thursday, the latest in a series of prisoner swaps agreed at peace talks in Istanbul earlier this month. Neither side said how many prisoners were released in the latest exchange. The two countries pledged to swap at least 1,000 soldiers each during their direct meeting in Istanbul on June 2 but no follow-up talks have been scheduled. The return of prisoners of war and the repatriation of war dead have been among the few areas of cooperation between the warring sides since Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. 'Today, warriors of the Armed Forces, the National Guard, and the State Border Guard Service are returning home,' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on social media. He shared images of Ukrainian soldiers draped in blue-and-yellow national flags, smiling and tearfully embracing. AFP reporters in Ukraine's northern Chernigiv region saw relatives awaiting the prisoner release. Some family members waved posters of missing or captured soldiers in the hope someone would recognize their loved ones and bring them news. Svitlana Nosal learned her husband Viktor had been freed. 'It's such a joy, I don't know how to describe it, how to put it into words,' she said, laughing and crying in the late afternoon sun. The majority of those released on Thursday were held captive for more than three years, according to Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War. Many of them were taken prisoner in Mariupol, a Ukrainian port city that fell to Russian forces in 2022 following a nearly three-month siege, it said. Russia said its soldiers had been transferred to Belarus and were receiving 'psychological and medical care.' 'Another group of Russian servicemen has been returned from territory controlled by the Kyiv regime,' the defense ministry said in a statement. It posted a video showing freed Russian soldiers draped in their national flag, chanting 'Russia, Russia, Russia!'
