Stop Israel's War On Gaza Vigil

On Saturday 24th November, following Bath Stop War Coalition's weekly vigil outside Bath Abbey, a demonstration calling for an end to Israel's war on Gaza took place. Although a ceasefire had been called by the time of the demonstration, reports were already coming in of Israel breaking the terms of the ceasefire, which many saw as a temporary measure in any case, and it was decided that the demonstration would go ahead.

Despite heavy rain, over 20 people turned out for the demonstration, including people from Bath Stop War Coalition, Occupy Bath, Bath Socialist Worker Party, BARF, South West Food Not Bombs and other members of the public, including film director Ken Loach, who has long opposed Israel's aggression towards Palestinians.

Many people I spoke to were very clear that they do not support Hamas, but were there in support of the Palestinians and were against the attacks and oppression they have being living under for generations. This was not a demonstration against Israeli civilians by any means, but against the actions taken by the Israeli government and military.

Local campaigner Simon Jilley commented: "Although things haven't broken out into something full-scale, they also hadn't for many years in the past. This is the way that this conflict has been working though - it is completely built upon creating fear amongst the people of this region. Not only have millions of people been displaced in some way over the last century in this region, but they are also given a bloody scary life to hang onto. How would you feel if you and your family were forced out of your house, and chucked in a ghetto area where you become watched over at all times, and occasionally bombed? This demonstration, for me, is not just about what has been happening in Gaza over the last few weeks. It is so, incredibly, much more than that. For me, it is to demonstrate about the whole messed up situation in that region. It is give my voice to the change that I see in the world, with the hope that, somehow, my voice will spark beautiful things."

Further Reading:

Bath Chronicle article on the demo: http://www.thisisbath.co.uk/Protest-highlights-problems-Gaza/story-17458984-detail/story.html

Noam Chomsky: How to stop Israeli crimes and bring peace to Gaza: http://stopwar.org.uk/index.php/palestine-and-israel/2099-noam-chomsky-how-to-stop-israeli-war-crimes-and-bring-peace-to-gaza

 This short film, where Israelis are asked to role-play as Palestinians, is very moving http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxXPGvuJjSY