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Author Archives: Diana Safieh
Elders warn of consequences of “one-state reality” in Israel and Palestine
Following their visit to Israel and and Palestine, Mary Robinson and Ban Ki-moon warn that a ‘one-state reality’ is now rapidly extinguishing the prospect of a two-state solution. The Chair and Deputy Chair of The Elders today warned that a ‘one-state reality’ is now rapidly extinguishing the … Continue reading
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New report reveals human rights violations because of IHRA definition of antisemitism
The European Legal Support Centre (ELSC) has launched (June 6. 2023) its new report “Suppressing Palestinian Rights Advocacy through the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism – Violating the Rights to Freedom of Expression and Assembly in the European Union and … Continue reading
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Government’s new Bill drives a coach and horses through the UK’s claim to uphold human rights and international law.
By Richard Burden, Trustee This week, the UK Government has published a Bill that will both jettison Britain’s respect for international laws that ban the acquisition of territory by conquest and ignore UN rules signed by the UK over a … Continue reading
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Friends of Israel: The Backlash Against Palestinian Solidarity
By Hil Aked Review by Tim Llewellyn Verso, £18.99 Israel’s usually deep well of public approval in the British Isles began in 2000 quickly to empty. It was being seriously depleted by the collapse of the Oslo peace process and … Continue reading
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An Eye Witness account of my time as an Ecumenical Accompanier in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
6 June 2023 NOTE: this webinar was not be recorded, as per EAPPI standard policy. Ann Wilson (ex CAFOD employee in the Diocese of Salford and previous chaplain of Loreto College, Manchester) returned from monitoring human rights violations and breaches … Continue reading
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The 2030 roadmap for UK-Israel bilateral relations
Published 21 March 2023 Signed at One Carlton Gardens, London, on 21 March 2023 For the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Of the State of Israel For the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and … Continue reading
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Screening of the documentary film Britain in Palestine 1917 – 1948
April 2023 Palestine Museum US held a Screening of our film 18-minute documentary Britain in Palestine 1917-1948, followed by Q&A discussion with Balfour Project Vice-Chair Sir Vincent Fean, a British diplomat, and Trustee John McHugo, a British historian and lawyer. … Continue reading
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Israel/UK Roadmap – the text and the reactions
Netanyahu and Sunak – Letter in The Times, 28 March 2023 On Friday Rishi Sunak welcomed Benjamin Netanyahu, and stressed the importance of upholding shared “democratic values, including in the proposed judicial reforms in Israel”. Mr Netanyahu went home and … Continue reading
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The United Nations and Palestine: Stranded Between Promise and Performance with Richard Falk, John Dugard and Michael Lynk
12 April 2023 Richard Falk is an American professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University, and Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees. Falk has published extensively with multiple books written about international law and the … Continue reading
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Executive Committee (EXCO)
Andrew Cunningham is a Founder of Darien Analytics, a UK firm that advises clients on Corporate Governance and Risk Management. He is a Visiting Professor at the London Institute of Banking and Finance, and a non-Executive Director of ARC Ratings. … Continue reading
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A Palestinian journey from homeland to exile and back
By Rabbi Danny Rich Stranger in My Own Land Palestine, Israel and One Family’s Story of Home By Fida Jiryis (C.Hirst & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., London, 2022) In a submission to ‘Zionism: a Jewish Communal Response from the UK’ (Board … Continue reading
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How the US persistently shields Israel from accountability at the UN
By Michael Lynk In his eloquent 2012 memoir, Kofi Annan, the former secretary general of the United Nations, wrote that the failure of the U.N. to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East was a deep internal wound as old … Continue reading
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6m+ Israeli Jews; 6m+Palestinian Arabs: how to start squaring the Holy Land circle
By Menachem Klein (reprinted from the US journal LOGOS*) The death of Faisal Husseini, the senior Palestinian leader in East Jerusalem, in May, 2001, and Israel’s order to close the Orient House, the PLO headquarters in Jerusalem, in August of … Continue reading
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From the new colonies to the metropolis: how the one regime changes the Israel-Palestine question
By Menachem Klein (reprinted from LOGOS*) This is a much-extended and updated version of a previously published article.[1] Israel’s November, 2022, election results, which led to the establishment of a far right coalition with radical settlers occupying key positions in the … Continue reading
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In conversation with Ambassador (rtd.), State of Israel Ilan Baruch and Former Director of Israeli Affairs, State of Palestine Ashraf Al-Ajrami
with Balfour Project chair Andrew Whitley 8 March 2023 Ambassador (ret.) Ilan Baruch is chairperson of the Policy Working Group (PWG), an Israeli advocacy team focusing on policy issues pertaining to the achievement of peace between Israel and Palestine based … Continue reading
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Britain Must Act Now to Block Unprecedented Israeli Settlement Plans
As you may have read or heard, Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s government is advancing large-scale plans to build many new settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. These are being done in defiance of … Continue reading
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Trustees
Andrew Whitley – ChairAndrew Whitley succeeded Sir Vincent Fean as Chair of the Balfour Project on 1 June 2022. He has been a Trustee since 2018. A retired senior United Nations official, Andrew spent much of his working life in … Continue reading
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How Palestine was ‘disappeared’ by Britain, Jordan and the Zionists
We are republishing this review of Collusion Across the Jordan (1988), the first book to demonstrate conclusively that in 1947-1948, Britain, Jordan and the Zionists worked to ensure there would be no Palestinian state. Israel has continued that policy to … Continue reading
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New Israeli Government
Occupied Palestinian Territories: Volume 829: debated on Monday 27 March 2023 Asked by Baroness Janke (Lib Dem) To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the recent transfer of governance powers in parts of the Occupied … Continue reading
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Diplomatic missions visit Palestinian community threatened with demolition
Jerusalem, Jan 30, 2023, issued by the Office of the European Union Representative (West Bank and Gaza Strip, UNRWA) Representatives of Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, the EU, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland the UK … Continue reading
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The case against Netanyahu’s rewriting of history
By John McHugo, Mike Scott-Baumann and Peter Shambrook Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said: “The Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land nor occupiers in our eternal capital Jerusalem, and no UN resolution will twist this historical … Continue reading
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The 1920 Jerusalem riots – Arab fears, Zionist pressures, faulty security cited in British Palin inquiry
By Mike Scott-Baumann The Report of the Palin Commission (or Court) of Inquiry, 1920 The Commission was established in May, 1920, to examine the reasons for the Jerusalem [‘Nebi Musa’] riots of April, 1920, and “the extent and causes of racial feelings … Continue reading
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Inventing the new antisemitism
Israel and its acolytes have long pushed the agenda that anti-Zionism is a form of anti-Jewish racism. A new book shows how this endeavour came at the expense of Palestinians and diaspora Jews alike. By Em Hilton “Whatever Happened to Antisemitism?: … Continue reading
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2023 CONFERENCE: Human Rights in Palestine: Responsibility and Accountability
Recordings now available below Welcome – Andrew Whitley, Balfour Project Chair & Introduction to Conference—Baroness Sayeeda Warsi Click here for Audio/Podcast Keynote Speech followed by Q&A—Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories Click here for Audio/Podcast … Continue reading
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Israel and Palestine: neighbours, yet worlds apart – and why Britain matters
19 January 2023 in The Ambassador Partnership By Sir Vincent Fean A team in the UK Foreign Office deals with the Middle East Peace Process, also known as Israel/Palestine. Problem: there is no Process, and no Peace. There is … Continue reading
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The UK opposes all unilateral actions that will make Israeli-Palestinian peace harder to achieve
UK Statement at the UN Security Council, 18 Jan 2023 Last year saw large numbers of Palestinians and Israelis killed, worsening rates of settler violence, and the emergence of new Palestinian militant groups. Unfortunately, 2023 has also started with violence … Continue reading
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Matthew Hughes – British Pacification in Mandate Palestine, 1936-39
Thursday 23rd February 2023 Matthew Hughes is Chair in military history at Brunel University London. His most recent book Britain’s Pacification of Palestine: the British Army, the Colonial State and the Arab Revolt, 1936-39 came out with Cambridge University Press in 2019. … Continue reading
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Matthew Teller – Jerusalem and the British: 200 turbulent years
March 2023 Matthew Teller’s “Nine Quarters of Jerusalem: A New Biography of the Old City” (Profile Books, 2022) was named a Book of the Year by the Daily Telegraph. Matthew writes for the BBC, Guardian, Independent, Times, Financial Times and … Continue reading
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Chronicler of Palestine – Raja Shehadeh Webinar
Author Raja Shehadi in conversation with journalist Tim Llewellyn about his new book We Could Have Been Friends my Father and I January 2023 Raja Shehadeh is a lawyer and writer and the founder of the pioneering Palestinian human rights … Continue reading
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The Status Quo governing Jerusalem’s holy sites preserves peace: UK statement at the Security Council
5 January 2023 Statement by British Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on situation in the Middle East Firstly, the UK recognises that Jerusalem’s holy sites including Haram al Sharif/Temple Mount hold particular significance for many around … Continue reading
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Chronicler of Palestine – Raja Shehadeh Webinar
Author Raja Shehadi in conversation with journalist Tim Llewellyn about his new book We Could Have Been Friends my Father and I Thursday 19th January 2023 Raja Shehadeh is a lawyer and writer and the founder of the pioneering Palestinian … Continue reading
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Palestine: overview of 2022 and prospects for this year
Thursday 2nd February 2023 Ray Dolphin worked in the West Bank and Gaza for over 30 years, most recently for the UN office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), where he was Senior Analyst. In addition to numerous UN … Continue reading
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THE UN, the World Court and Israel’s 55-year occupation of the Palestinian Territories
ANDREW WHITLEY, Chair of the Balfour Project Trustees, introduces an article by HUGH LOVATT, of the European Council on Foreign Affairs, on the UN General Assembly decision to ask the World Court to give its opinion on Israel’s occupation and … Continue reading
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Palestine: overview of 2022 and prospects for this year
Thursday 2nd February 2023 Ray Dolphin worked in the West Bank and Gaza for over 30 years, most recently for the UN office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), where he was Senior Analyst. In addition to numerous UN … Continue reading
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Palestine/Israel/UK: prospects for 2023 and launch of Balfour Project “Abandoning Palestine” conference booklet with Layla Moran MP
9th January 2023 Please join us for a 45 minute recording of our webinar with Layla Moran MP. Layla, our chair Andrew Whitley and trustee John McHugo launched the Balfour Project booklet recording our 2022 conference “Abandoning Palestine: the end … Continue reading
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Palestine/Israel: Prime Minister Netanyahu’s annexationist policies must have consequences
I commend to you the letter below to the Foreign Secretary about the incoming Israeli Government. It is signed by Julie Elliott MP, co chair of the Britain Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group at Westminster, and co signed by Parliamentarians … Continue reading
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This new Israeli Government? ‘They don’t care about the world’—Israel ex-Ambassador
This is an address by Alon Liel, a leading member of the Policy Working Group in Israel, an NGO that works to end the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories, now in its 56th year, and opposes Israel’s policies towards … Continue reading
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Joy, faith and Palestine: How Morocco’s team united the Arab world
Mostafa Mohamed 8 December 2022 Headed to the quarter-finals after an unprecedented run, the North African team has come to represent something bigger than football After a tense two hours, Morocco defeated Spain in a penalty shootout on Tuesday to … Continue reading
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Palestine: The Unexpected Star of the 2022 World Cup
From player demonstrations to unfurled flags, Palestinian struggle has been visible and fearless at the World Cup. By Dave Zirin and Jules Boykoff When Morocco defeated Spain in a penalty shootout, advancing to the quarterfinals of the Qatar 2022 men’s … Continue reading
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Palestine’s World Cup triumph
20th December 2022 Omar Karmi, a Palestinian-British journalist, and Tamir Sorek, an expert on football in Palestine-Israel, discuss the Palestinian phenomenon at the 2022 World Cup, the reactions worldwide, and the game and players in Israel-Palestine. Video Audio Transcript Omar … Continue reading
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Football’s coming home…
…for the Palestinians! How the World Cup put Palestine in the international spotlight. Palestine: The Unexpected Star of the 2022 World Cup Joy, faith and Palestine: How Morocco’s team united the Arab world Israel scores own goal with World Cup … Continue reading
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How can Britain Help Right the Historic Wrong that it Committed Against the Palestinian People?
Mark Seddon of Deep Dive Palestine is live with Andrew Whitley, founder & executive director of Geo-Political Advisory Services (GPAS) & Chair of the Balfour Project. Andrew has had an expansive career first as a journalist for the BBC & … Continue reading
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‘Grave concern’ for increasing instability in West Bank and Jerusalem, says UK
Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on the Situation in the Middle East, Nov 28, 2022 ‘The UK is gravely concerned by increasing instability in the West Bank and Jerusalem. Since 14 November, four Israelis … Continue reading
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A warning for Christians – from the birthplace of Christ
The Rev. Munther Isaac speaks from inside the walls of beleaguered Bethlehem Munther Isaac is a Palestinian Christian pastor and theologian. He is pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem. He is also the academic dean of Bethlehem … Continue reading
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UN committee votes to ask International Court to decide on Israel ‘annexation’ of OPT
The United Nations General Assembly Fourth Committee (on Decolonisation) has voted 98-17 on a resolution to seek an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on whether Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal on the grounds that its … Continue reading
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Israel Embassy move would ‘breach 1961 Vienna Convention’
Letter to UK Foreign Secretary from 27 international law experts says ‘there is nothing to review’ by Professor Iain GM Scobbie, Chair of Public International Law, and Director of the Manchester International Law Centre, University of Manchester
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Embassy move dropped
Britain’s Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has dropped the idea of “reviewing” the location of the UK Embassy in Israel, as suggested by his predecessor Liz Truss. Her proposal was to consider moving the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a … Continue reading
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“Oh little town of Bethlehem” – Palestinian Christians, Reality, Challenges and Prospects – Revd Dr Munther Isaac
The world turns to Bethlehem during Christmas, but they have a fairytale image of the little town. However, this is a real community with real challenges. This webinar gives an insight into the reality and challenges of Palestinians and Palestinian … Continue reading
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Will Sunak persevere with the Boycott Bill to outlaw local councils’ ethical investment decisions?
By Richard Burden, Balfour Project Trustee Britain has a new Prime Minister and at least some different faces in Cabinet from those who were there a few weeks ago. Although headlines are understandably dominated by questions about the approach the … Continue reading
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Commission of Inquiry finds Israeli occupation unlawful under international law
Andrew Whitley, Chair of the Balfour Project, writes: A brand-new report from a UN Commission of Inquiry into grave breaches of human rights and international humanitarian law in Palestine and Israel will present a moral (and legal) dilemma for the … Continue reading
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