British Palestinians urge action from Government as relatives starve in Gaza
At a press conference in London on Thursday, the group called on the Government to put more pressure on Israel to allow humanitarian aid into the territory.
The group is asking the Government to drop the 2030 roadmap for UK-Israel bilateral relations and impose comprehensive economic and diplomatic sanctions on Israel.
It also wants the UK to cease all forms of military co-operation with Israel and impose a full two-way arms embargo.
Israel has imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip since March.
On Wednesday, an Israeli and US-backed group paused food delivery at its three distribution sites in the Gaza Strip after health officials said dozens of Palestinians were killed in a series of shootings near the sites this week.
Israel's military said it fired near people it described as suspects who it said approached its forces and ignored warning shots.
It says it is looking into reports of casualties and blamed Hamas for civilian deaths because the militant group is entrenched in populated areas.
Wafaa Shamallakh, 38, an Arabic interpreter who works for Kingston Council and whose siblings are in south Gaza, described the danger they have faced trying to access aid.
'When they go to what they call distribution points, it's very hard,' Ms Shamallakh told the PA news agency.
'There are hundreds of thousands of people gathering in a big crowd.
'The Israeli army, they don't leave them alone just to collect what they want.
'I have a relative who got injured because they were firing on the ground and he got shrapnel in his shoulder. He was lucky to survive.
'They also throw smoke bombs on people, so they make it very hard to see.'
Ms Shamallakh, who says she has stayed in close contact with her family over the last 18 months, described their daily struggle for survival.
Her brother and sister, who have had to relocate several times since the war started, have returned to their neighbourhood in south Gaza which has been reduced to rubble.
'They live in tents with no insulation, no electricity, no water,' she said.
'They have to cook their food and bread on fire.
'They have to in the morning go search for wood which is very difficult to find.
'They often have to take a very deadly journey to search in bombed buildings.'
Ms Shamallakh said her siblings and nieces and nephews have lost a significant amount of weight.
She said: 'My brother and sister have to divide a piece of bread with their children so everyone can have a little taste of bread.
'They have to make lentil soup, and in the morning and in the evening at dinner time they have to eat the same thing.
'If they are lucky enough they can have a can of beans or something or they mix a little pasta to make a meal different from just lentil soup.'
'The moment of relief for my sister was when her husband came back after trying to go to aid distribution points, and he came back alive,' said Ms Shamallakh.
'He came back with nothing, but at least he was alive.
'This is the situation of all the Gazans, not only my family.'
Ali Mousa, 30, who lives in Manchester, fears for his sister Hind, who is a teacher in Gaza.
'The last 18 months have been really horrible. Lots of worries, lots of tears and just feeling scared all of the time,' Mr Mousa said.
'We lost contact and we couldn't reach her while she's in Gaza, and now they are experiencing starvation.
'The huge challenge now is that we feel really helpless. While my sister is going through all of this horrific experience, we can't really help her that much.'
'I feel that she could be killed anytime. She could be starved.
'I want her to survive this. I want her to be in a safe place. I don't want to lose her.'
On Thursday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told reporters aid needs to reach the people of Gaza 'at speed and at volume', describing the current situation as 'utterly intolerable'.
'In relation to what's happening in Gaza, we've been absolutely clear that it is intolerable and we need to get back to a ceasefire urgently, and that is our constant work with other allies to get us to that position,' he said.
'We need those hostages to come out, many of them have been held for a very long time.
'Of course, humanitarian aid needs to get in at speed and at volume, but that can only happen if we get back to a ceasefire, so I'm absolutely clear that the situation as it is is utterly intolerable, and that's why we've taken measures like the trading talks have been stood down, the sanctions we've put in and we're working with allies to see what else we can do.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
19 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Our politicians are the least serious in history – and that includes you, Nigel
This week an appalling case reminded us just how broken Britain is. We learnt that a 15-year-old boy killed elderly dogwalker Bhim Kohli while a female friend, aged 12, filmed it on her mobile phone. Both were laughing as the beloved grandfather lay dying in the street. How on earth can it have come to this? The case is emblematic of everything that has gone wrong – and continues to go wrong – in our fragmented, seemingly lawless society. We are led by complete incompetents: from police administering two-tier justice right the way up to our Prime Minister. It is little wonder there is a university course running in France on why the UK is such a failure. And Mayor of London Sadiq Khan's answer to our capital's woes, despite knife and other crimes soaring? Decriminalising cannabis. We knew Labour were not fit for purpose before they even took office, but this latest example of idiocy from City Hall really does sum up the problem with having hapless, careerist socialists anywhere near the levers of power. And now Reform UK appears to have imploded. Having abandoned the Conservative Party after an inept 14 years of governance, which left us with higher bills, higher taxes, higher NHS waiting lists and higher immigration, voters had hoped that Nigel Farage and his motley crew might bring the salvation Britain so desperately needs. Reform was meant to represent the alternative to 'uniparty' politics by ripping up the political rule book and restoring good old fashioned common sense. What we have learnt in the past 24 hours, however, is that the one thing uniting all four major parties in the UK (and I'm including the ludicrous Liberal Democrats in this, with their clown of a leader Sir Ed Davey) is just how thoroughly unserious they all are. Westminster currently resembles a cross-party circus act; what has the electorate done to deserve this? Let's take them one by one. We currently cannot believe a word slippery Starmer says after a string of Labour lies on tax, winter fuel, defence spending, relations with the EU, the Chagos Islands, immigration – you name it. They promised 6,500 more teachers with their vindictive VAT raid on private school fees and this week it was revealed teacher numbers are actually down since they took office. Millionaires are leaving, businesses are folding, more tax rises are on the way. We've got an Attorney General who wants to defend terrorists like Osama bin Laden's right-hand man while the justice system imprisons mothers like Lucy Connolly for 'hurty words' on the internet. The Left accuses Reform of being amateurs – and then run the country as if it's a university student union staffed by drop-outs. Yet the Right-wing opposition appears equally as childish. This week, we have had the shadow chancellor Mel Stride denouncing Liz Truss's premiership with some weasel words about the Tories 'never again undermining fiscal credibility by making promises we cannot afford'. The former prime minister – once famously compared to a lettuce – hit back with an excoriating statement on the political playground that is X, accusing Sir Mel of being a 'creature of the system' by siding with 'failed Treasury orthodoxy'. In what world does this blue-on-blue infighting help Kemi Badenoch as she struggles to cut through? Equally infantile was the typically boyish intervention of her former leadership rival Sir James Cleverly with a demand that the Conservatives stick to net zero – despite it being among the main reasons the party is now facing its own climate emergency. He's been invisible for months and then emerges with this sort of unhelpful Ed Milibandesque claptrap? Read the room, for pity's sake. All credit to Robert Jenrick for trying to find some grown-up solutions to some of the country's problems – like fare dodging, notwithstanding the self-serving nature of his attention-grabbing social media endeavours. Badenoch is trying her best to be a serious politician, with thoughtful rather than knee-jerk interventions on issues like our membership of the ECHR – only to have MPs in her ranks like Kit Malthouse spreading anti-Israel slanders like his declaration this week that Gaza is 'an abattoir where starving people are lured out through combat zones to be shot at'. Along with other Tories, he's also been calling for the Prime Minister to recognise a Palestinian state. Harebrained student politics are clearly not just confined to the Labour Party. We had hoped Reform, led by streetwise Nigel Farage, a man of political wisdom and experience, might rise above all this. But even he has been dogged by infantilism. If Rupert Lowe's 'more people watch my X videos than Nigel's' bravado wasn't bad enough, Reform now has been badly damaged by the similarly petulant flouncing out of party chairman Zia Yusuf. I like Zia and think he deserves credit for all the hard work he has put into professionalising the party over the past 11 months. But what on earth was there to be gained from such a public tantrum? Just leave quietly, don't blow the whole thing up with spiteful talk of working to get the party elected 'no longer being a good use of my time'. Similarly juvenile was the language he used to describe Reform MP Sarah Pochin's Commons call to ban the burka (which provoked laughter from the front bench: that's the state of public discourse in this country, folks). Responding to Katie Hopkins, of all people, on X, he wrote: 'Nothing to do with me. Had no idea about the question nor that it wasn't policy. Busy with other stuff. I do think it's dumb for a party to ask the PM if they would do something the party itself wouldn't do.' At the age of 38 and having worked at Goldman Sachs and established his own hugely successful business, he should know this is not the way to behave in the public eye. Reform remains a party that cannot even govern itself, let alone the country. This simply isn't good enough. The Government is useless, the Tories are a busted flush; if Reform seriously wants to break the doom loom of despair then it cannot be part of the problem. The party must get its act together – and fast.
Daily Mail
24 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
The bombers Ukraine destroyed with their brilliantly audacious Operation Spiderweb helped Putin blow up babies in their cots. So why hasn't Labour issued one word of celebration or congratulation?
It is now a week since the Ukrainians launched the most audacious raid since The Dambusters – an operation that was all the more stunning for being completely unassisted by the UK or any other western power. The Ukrainians have spent the last 18 months preparing Operation Spiderweb in total secrecy, and it has taken a few days to grasp the sheer brilliance of what they did. We now know that they mysteriously assembled the 117 drones in Russia itself, and then packed them in specially designed lorries.
Edinburgh Live
26 minutes ago
- Edinburgh Live
Edinburgh council reject call for ban on Braid Hills weapons testing
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info An Edinburgh councillor has spoken out after a city committee voted not to ban arms firms from testing military equipment in city parks. In December 2024, arms manufacturer Leonardo was given permission to test communications equipment in the Braid Hills. Green councillor Ben Parker said he was 'disappointed' that councillors chose to not back his motion, which would have seen the practice banned. He continued: 'Today, Councillors had a chance to stand up for peace and instead chose inaction. 'Despite community objections and a clear moral imperative, the Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative parties have voted to continue to allow arms manufacturers to test their equipment in our beautiful, publicly owned, green spaces. 'The Council has previously taken a strong stance on opposing advertising and sponsorship from arms manufacturers, and it is completely hypocritical to then allow these same companies to use our beautiful public space to test their equipment. 'At a time when we are witnessing the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people, we should not be supporting companies who profit from arms sales to the Israeli Government in any way.' Cllr Parker had originally put the motion forward for discussion at May's full council meeting, but an amendment by the Liberal Democrat group sent it to the Culture and Communities Committee for discussion. In a deputation to the committee, he urged councillors to take a stand on the issue, drawing comparisons to the city's Labour council taking a stand against apartheid during the 1986 Commonwealth Games held in the city. That year's games were protested widely, and boycotted by 26 nations, due to the UK Government's relationship with the then white-minority government in South Africa. Liberal Democrat councillor Fiona Bennett said: 'I have been to Iraq twice, once in 2018 with an NGO I'm very closely involved with and again in 2019 with the UN supporting victims of ISIS. 'I saw first-hand devastation throughout northern Iraq and in particular in Mosul – images that will never leave me, and images that will haunt me, for the rest of my life. 'The events unfolding around the world right now are harrowing. And I know people on the ground in Gaza right now, I can't bear what they're telling me. 'This is incredibly difficult, we're being forced to confront balancing our ethical values and responsibilities with the very real fragility of our national security. 'This is the most fragile and uncertain political, global landscape in my lifetime, and I really worry about the future our daughters have in front of them. 'So when we talk about banning testing, are we saying there should be no such testing anywhere in the UK? 'And if so, are we inadvertently undermining our own ability to defend ourselves at a time when global threats are growing and becoming even more complex?' Councillors narrowly supported an amended version of the motion put forward by the Liberal Democrat group, which did not pursue a ban. Instead, it referenced the city's draft parks management plan, which empowers council officers to ban any activity which will or could 'endanger' any person or property.
