Author Archives: Diana Safieh

Middle East Studies Association speaks out against cultural genocide

Published by Jewish Voice for Labour on Sat 16 Mar 2024 MESA Board Joint Statement with CAF regarding the ongoing genocidal violence against the Palestinian people and their cultural heritage in Gaza The Board of Directors of the Middle East … Continue reading

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WEBINAR: Resist! Palestinian women and non-violent resistance to occupation with Rula Salameh

Thursday 21st March at 3pm UK time Register for Webinar Rula Salameh is a veteran journalist, community organiser, and the Education and Outreach Director in Palestine for Just Vision, an organization that fills a media gap in Israel-Palestine through independent … Continue reading

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Nidal Younis Exposes Israel’s Silent Ethnic Cleansing of the West Bank

Nidal Younis is the mayor of Masafer Yatta and head of the Masafer Yatta village council. He has been active in attempts to save his community since the 1990s. Interview recorded February 29 2024. Masafer Yatta is a Palestinian hamlet … Continue reading

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Statement of the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, to the General Assembly

4 March 2024, New York I am here today because UNRWA, the United Nations Agency for Palestine Refugees, is at a breaking point. Seventy-five years after its creation by this Assembly as a temporary UN entity, pending a just political … Continue reading

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Britain must fight back now against Israel’s political onslaught on UNRWA

By Andrew Whitley, Chair of Balfour Project Trustees Often an old piece of furniture is so familiar that it’s only when it is no longer there that one realises how invaluable it was – and how much it will be … Continue reading

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The UN experience in Gaza

By Hamilton Fish Armstrong, Editor of Foreign Affairs Published on July 1, 1957 It would be wrong to call the United Nations experiment in administering the Gaza Strip a failure; the experiment was never made. Some preparations for it were … Continue reading

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A symbolic vote

With grateful thanks to Arab Digest, we reproduce below its newsletter of 23 Feb 2024 on the plight of the Palestinian people in Gaza and chaos in the Commons.  Arab Digest is a UK media company producing a daily newsletter … Continue reading

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The Boycott Bill: ‘another pernicious piece of legislation’—Lord Hain

26 February 2024 By Tim Llewellyn Two Balfour Project patrons, Lord Hain and the Lord Bishop of Southwark, the Right Reverend Christopher Chessun, spoke in the Lords on Tuesday 20 Feb, in opposition to the so-called Gove Boycott Bill, which … Continue reading

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We must work with the US to stop a massacre in Rafah

By Sir Vincent Fean, Balfour Project Trustee The Independent, 18 February 2024 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered his military to plan the “evacuation” of Palestinian civilians from the Gazan city of Rafah, on the border with Egypt’s Sinai … Continue reading

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After 7 Oct: Israel’s search for victory: a personal statement on the war

By Menachem Klein This article originally appeared in Logos I am not neutral. As a citizen of Israel, I hurt and cry with my fellow Israeli citizens, Jews and Arabs, victims of Hamas’ barbaric attack. Struggle for national liberation does … Continue reading

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The Hamas narrative of 7 Oct, and the impossibility of ignoring it

By Menachem Klein 2 Feb 2024 Hamas’s attack on 7 Oct and Israel’s retaliation against Hamas and Gaza Strip residents are unprecedented shocking events in their severity, repercussions and impact on both peoples’ collective memory. Only a few of those … Continue reading

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How to turn the tragedy into a strategic opportunity with Nadav Tamir, Executive Director of J Street Israel

4th March 2024 Watch Video Listen to Audio/Podcast Nadav Tamir is the Executive Director of J Street Israel and an Advisor for International and Governmental Affairs at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation. Nadav served as the Senior Policy … Continue reading

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Destruction of Gaza’s health system: need to restore hope with Dr Nick Maynard

13th February 2024 Watch Recording Listen to Audio/Podcast Professor Nick Maynard trained at Oxford University, Guy’s Hospital, London, and Melbourne, Australia. He is a Consultant Upper GI Surgeon at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, and Associate Professor of Surgery at … Continue reading

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Injustice to the defenceless: the plight of Palestinian children in Israeli military detention.

20th February 2024 with Claire Nicholl (Save the Children), Tareq Shrourou (Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights) and Jude Lanchin (solicitor). Save the Children Injustice Report Save the Children Defenceless Report Children in Military Custody Report Military Court Watch Report Save … Continue reading

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The West is siding with Israel in its long war against the UN refugee agency

By Jonathan Cook 30 Jan 2024 Israel has long plotted the downfall of UNRWA, aware that it is one of the biggest obstacles to eradicating the Palestinians as a people There is an important background to the decision by the … Continue reading

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BBC News – UK considering recognising Palestine state, Lord Cameron says

By James LandaleDiplomatic correspondent  Britain is ready to bring forward the moment when it formally recognises a Palestinian state, the foreign secretary has suggested. Lord Cameron said Palestinians had to be given a political horizon to encourage peace in the … Continue reading

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Helen Clark urges UNRWA donors to immediately resume funding

Media release: Helen Clark, member of The Elders and former Prime Minister of New Zealand and head of the UN Development Programme, issued the following comment urging UNRWA donors to immediately resume funding so that humanitarian assistance continues to reach Gazans … Continue reading

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British Government suspension of future funding for UNRWA

Our Government is wrong, says the Balfour Project Our Government has suspended future UK funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which is by far the most important and effective provider of humanitarian and development assistance to Palestinian … Continue reading

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The Elders call for immediate compliance by Israel with ICJ provisional measures

Statement: The Elders call for Israel to comply immediately with the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to protect Palestinians in Gaza from acts of genocide. The Elders also call for Israel’s allies to publicly affirm their … Continue reading

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Sir Vincent Fean on The World Tonight – BBC Sounds

30 January 2024

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A cautionary tale: how Israel was caught napping by Hamas on 7 Oct

By Ronen Bergman and Yoav Zitun Published by Yedioth Ahronoth’s weekend supplement 7 Days, 12 Jan 2024. Translation by Dena Shunra for The Electronic Intifada, based on the print edition. On the morning of 7 Oct some of the most … Continue reading

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UK must take action against Israel after ICJ ruling of plausible genocide

The Balfour Project welcomes the Order by the ICJ to accept jurisdiction and to issue Provisional Measures in the case brought by South Africa against Israel for breach of the Genocide Convention.  We endorse the press release issued by CAABU shortly after the Court had issued its … Continue reading

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Israel learned methods to suppress Palestinians from 1930s British forces

By Roger Spooner   Tom Bateman writing in 2022 gave an example of the brutal methods Britain used to suppress the Arab revolt: “The people of al-Bassa got their lesson in imperial brutality when the British soldiers came after dawn. … Continue reading

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Policy of Deceit and the Quest for Peace: An Evening of Reflection at Initiatives of Change

On January 9th 2024, an engaging event took place at Greencoat Place, hosted by Initiatives of Change (IofC UK) in collaboration with the Balfour Project. Peter Shambrook, the author of “Policy of Deceit,” was the central figure of the evening, … Continue reading

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The greater goal in Gaza: For lasting peace, Israel must end its occupation of Palestinian land

By Marwan Muasher Published 15 January 2024 As Israel’s war in Gaza enters its fourth month, an intensifying debate has unfolded about who should rule the territory when the fighting stops. Some have suggested an Arab force, a notion already … Continue reading

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Patron Bishop Christopher calls for ceasefire ‘to end appalling suffering’ in Gaza – The Diocese of Southwark

Sir Vincent Fean, Balfour Project Trustee, writes: Christopher Chessun, the Anglican Bishop of Southwark, visited Palestine from 14-18 January. His incisive statement is here and reproduced below. Bishop Chessun is a patron of this charity, and speaks for the Church of … Continue reading

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The Balfour Project presents extracts from a lecture given online by Professor Salam Fayyad, Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority (2007-2013), on 5 December 2023

Professor Fayyad was in conversation with Professor Raphael Cohen-Almagor, director of the Middle East Study Centre (MESC) at Hull University; Sir Vincent Fean, Balfour Project Trustee and former Consul-General in East Jerusalem; and Sir Tom Phillips, MESC Advisory Board member … Continue reading

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Mr. Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator – Briefing to the UN Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Delivered on 12 January 2024 Mr. President, Thank you for this opportunity to address the Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory. For nearly 100 days, what has been unfolding in Israel and the … Continue reading

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War on Gaza: The West’s military action against the Houthis is doomed to fail

I commend the article “War on Gaza: the West’s military action against the Houthis is doomed to fail” by Balfour Project trustee Richard Burden, published in Middle East Eye on 13 January. The article is here and reproduced below. No supporter of … Continue reading

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Post Conflict Gaza; Construction or Reconstruction with Charlie Bird OBE

January 2024 Watch Video Listen to Audio/Podcast In conversation with Andrew Whitley, Balfour Project Chair.  From 2010 to November 2018 Charles Bird, OBE, was a Teaching Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence (CSTPV), University … Continue reading

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The forgotten atrocities: Britain’s history of abuse in Palestine – BBC Newsnight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKPayr11kFI&t=1s&ab_channel=BBCNews 7 Oct, 2022 The UK government is being urged to make a formal apology for alleged war crimes by British troops in historical Palestine nearly a century ago. The petition, along with 300 pages of evidence, is being brought … Continue reading

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West ‘colluding in terrible failure’ in Gaza, warns Peter Hain

Labour peer and former Middle East minister says Hamas will have to be included in future governance of Gaza Sir Peter Hain is a Patron of the Balfour Project.  Western policy towards Gaza represents collusion in a terrible failure and … Continue reading

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Parliamentary Questions

UNWRA   UIN HL2083, tabled on 31 January 2024 https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-01-31/HL2083 Question Baroness Janke, Liberal Democrat To ask His Majesty’s Government whether they intend to call for an immediate independent investigation into the killing of 150 staff of the United Nations … Continue reading

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Past Parliamentary Questions

Written and Oral Questions and Answers that can be found in Hansard (the Official Report) which is the edited verbatim report of proceedings of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.   Topics Annexation Archaeology COVID-19  Detention … Continue reading

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Jerusalem and Gaza: Taking Stock with Daniel Seidemann

16th January 2024 Daniel (Danny) Seidemann has lived in Jerusalem since 1973. He has been a member of the Israeli Bar Association since 1987. Since 1991, he has specialized in the geopolitics of contemporary Jerusalem, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in … Continue reading

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Many more will die from attacks, disease and famine if we do not stop the humanitarian catastrophe: UK statement at the UN Security Council

by British Ambassador Barbara Woodward, at the UN Security Council meeting on Gaza on 29 Dec 2023.   President, let me start with the humanitarian crisis. The 21 Dec IPC [Infection Prevention and Control] report records that more people are … Continue reading

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The Holy Land: what happened in Palestine by Trustee John McHugo in The Tablet

Published in The Tablet 16 December 2023 issue.  Download Article as PDF Peace in Israel/Palestine will not be reached until each side understands the legitimate rights of the other – and stops interpreting facts to advocate its own story By … Continue reading

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Letter to the Foreign Secretary: ceasefire now

Background and timeline: Brigadier John Deverell CBE, former Director of Defence Diplomacy at the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), has coordinated a letter from military and foreign policy experts to UK Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron. It calls for the UK … Continue reading

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Keys Gaza Special Reporting Under Fire

A central contributor to the Keys: a Troubled Inheritance podcast the Balfour Project is running (series two picks up in spring, 2024) is Sami Abu Salem. He is the Gazan journalist who contributes the Palestinian side of the story to Mike Joseph‘s journal of … Continue reading

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56 UK parliamentarians call for UK Government to ban violent Israeli settlers and those who incite them from entry to the UK

A letter, co-drafted by the Balfour Project and CAABU, to David Cameron and James Cleverly MP. Rt Hon Lord Cameron, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development AffairsRt Hon James Cleverly MP, Secretary of State for the Home Department Dear Secretaries … Continue reading

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West Bank focus: lockdown, settler violence and forced displacement in Masafer Yatta

19th December 2023 The Balfour Project and Sadaka, the Ireland Palestine Alliance, jointly presented this timely webinar. While the world’s attention is on the Gaza war, very bad things are happening fast in the West Bank. Susan Power, Head of … Continue reading

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Arab-Jews and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: In Conversation: Avi Shlaim and Nic Pelham

Donate to the Balfour Project Avi Shlaim is an Emeritus Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of the British Academy. His books include Collusion across the Jordan: King Abdullah, the Zionist Movement, and the … Continue reading

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A mass assassination factory’: Inside Israel’s calculated bombing of Gaza

Permissive airstrikes on non-military targets and the use of an artificial intelligence system have enabled the Israeli army to carry out its deadliest war on Gaza, a +972 and Local Call investigation reveals.   By Yuval Abraham 30 Nov The … Continue reading

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Letter to the Israeli Ambassador from Amnesty International about Anas Abu Srour

To her Excellency the Israeli Ambassador Dear Ambassador, I write on behalf of Westminster and Bayswater Amnesty International Group to express our concern for Anas Abu Srour, 35, has been arrested by the Israeli occupation army on Tuesday, November 28th. Abu … Continue reading

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The Hamas attack and Israel’s War on Gaza: ‘a place where no human being can exist’

By Omer Bartov 24 Nov Like many other people in Israel and across the world, my first reaction to the attack on 7 Oct was of shock and horror. But that initial reaction was accompanied by rage, not only at … Continue reading

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Christian Church leaders worldwide urge Sunak to back ceasefire now

Rt Hon Rishi Sunak Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland No 10 Downing Street, London, SW1P 2AB November 29, 2023 “My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within; my heart is poured … Continue reading

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Israel’s war cabinet has learned nothing from its failures

The leaders who oversaw Israel’s Gaza policy for 15 years are incapable of abandoning the erroneous ideas that collapsed on 7 Oct. By Menachem Klein, 26 Oct, 2023 (0riginally published in 972mag.com) In 1991, American neoconservatives — many of whom … Continue reading

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How the Palestinians of Gaza live with Hamas

A personal view by a Palestinian from Gaza who grew up in the era of the resistance group’s rise to power. The author writes: Journalism and its practitioners will always carry an inherent point of view no matter how objective we … Continue reading

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‘We Need a Ceasefire Now!’ Sir Vincent Fean on Deep Dive Palestine Podcast

Mark Seddon: Today British Parliamentarians wrote to PM Rishi Sunak calling for a ceasefire. What did the letter say? Sir Vincent Fean: The letter is signed by around about 120 members of Parliament in both houses: Peers and members of … Continue reading

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Dear President Biden: The Elders’ open letter on Israel and Palestine

Read the open letter on The Elders’ website Download the open letter  

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