A huge UK protest over Donald Trump and his call for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza has been scheduled – just as numerous campaign groups step up to condemn the US president, and call on the UK government to intervene. It comes as protests have already broken out in the US over Trump’s presidency more broadly.
Donald Trump: a maniac, out of control
As the Canary reported, Donald Trump was at a press conference accompanied by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The latter is wanted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court yet US authorities failed to arrest him.
Trump has said that “the US will take over the Gaza Strip” and “own it”, refusing to rule out sending US troops to occupy the territory.
For more than a year, Israel and its supporters have denied that the true aim of the genocidal assault on Gaza. Israel has killed over 61,000 people. But the aim has been the destruction of the Palestinian population, and denial of their rights including the right to self-determination. Backed and supported by the USA for its own strategic interests, that objective has now been made explicit.
70% of Palestinians in Gaza are already refugees, driven by Israel from elsewhere in historic Palestine in previous rounds of ethnic cleansing. The situation for the population remains dire after 16 months of genocide. Israel has damaged or destroyed 92% of housing, and left Gaza with severe shortages of food, water, fuel, and medicine.
In the illegally occupied West Bank, Israel is escalating its attacks, including large-scale invasions of Palestinian refugee camps. In the past two weeks, Israel has killed at least 25 Palestinians in Jenin, destroyed over 100 homes, and displaced over 30,000 people.
So, UK-based campaign groups have hit back.
Illegal, illegal, illegal
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) said in a statement that:
This is a grotesque plan that, if enacted, would directly contravene the Geneva Convention, which forbids the forcible transfer of populations. Trump’s proposals are a blueprint for a crime of historic proportions, and form part of an all-out assault on the rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination. The plan is, however, not new. It echoes those we know have been discussed by Israeli officials for many decades. In October 2023, Israel’s Ministry of Intelligence drew up a proposal for the forcible expulsion of Gaza’s residents to Egypt.
As they have done for over 76 years, the Palestinian people will resist all attempts to force them from their homes and land. In Britain, we must escalate our solidarity, including by building for the upcoming national demonstration on Saturday 15 February, marching from Whitehall to the US Embassy.
The UK government must immediately condemn Trump’s monstrous proposals, affirm its commitment to the rights of the Palestinian people as enshrined in international law, including their right to self-determination. We also call on the government to defend and support UNRWA, and introduce meaningful sanctions to hold Israel accountable for its crimes, including through a comprehensive two-way arms embargo.
Meanwhile, the Jeremy Corbyn-founded Peace and Justice Project has also made an intervention:
The ethnic cleansing of Gaza and destruction of Palestine is now US foreign policy.
Demand that the British government publicly condemn this outrageous plan and take a stand for Palestinian rights.
✍️ Tell Trump: #HandsOffGaza by writing to your MP: https://t.co/4yCbEWqXBJ 🇵🇸 pic.twitter.com/aGJ7piPtwM
— Peace & Justice Project (@corbyn_project) February 5, 2025
It said in a statement:
International law is clear: the forcible transfer of people is illegal. Trump delivered this shocking statement next to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called him “the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House”.
Despite a fragile ceasefire holding in Gaza, we must keep up the pressure on world leaders —including Keir Starmer— to secure a just peace in the Holy Land, with a sovereign, independent Palestinian state.
Out on the streets
There will now be a protest marching to the US embassy on Saturday 15 February:
Ben Jamal, PSC director, said:
This is the fundamental litmus test for Keir Starmer’s government. History will judge how it responds at this moment. For months he has followed a line of staying close to US power and treating Israel as a liberal democracy, even as the world’s highest Court investigates it for the crime of genocide and its leader is wanted for crimes including using starvation as a weapon of war.
Now we see where this leads.
He stands silent as Trump and Netanyahu reveal a vision that has always been clear – extending Israel’s rule over all of historic Palestine, and completing the task of expelling Palestinians who continue to fight for their right to self-determination and freedom. The UK government must now make clear that it rejects this path, will oppose these plans in every relevant arena and end its complicit support for Israel’s violations of the rights of the Palestinian people.
We call on all who share our commitment to a world based on principles of rights, justice and the universal application of International law to be on the streets with us on February 15th when we march from Whitehall to the US Embassy.
What is the Labour government doing about Donald Trump?
On top of this, the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians has sent a letter to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. It is asking for clarity on a number of public statements and policy points introduced by the Trump administration in the US.
The letter highlight the following policy points:
- Public comments on permanent displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, including political pressure on Egypt and Jordan.
- Plans to impose sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC).
- Lifting of sanctions on illegal Israeli settlements.
- Withdrawal of all foreign aid funding, including for the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), but excluding Israel and Ukraine.
The ICJP said in a statement that:
This latest outburst is a clear and unequivocal call for the permanent displacement of the Palestinian people from Gaza, as well as a call for occupation and possible annexation.
In response, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said “they must be allowed home, they must be allowed to rebuild” but failed to condemn Trump’s remarks. Meanwhile, Environment Secretary Steve Reed praised Trump for his perceived role in obtaining a ceasefire and said that the UK Government would not provide a ‘running commentary’ on Trump’s remarks.
This soft, diplomatic approach is wholly inappropriate in the face of incendiary remarks that call for the dispossession of millions of people from their lands. We demand that the UK both condemns these remarks and takes concrete steps and devise an action plan that would aim to counter these policy measures and to protect the rights of Palestinians.
The quiet part out loud
The UK government’s refusal to provide a ‘running commentary’ on Trump’s ethnic cleansing remarks is a cop-out. It is a total shirking of responsibility. It’s simply not enough to utter platitudes on Palestinians’ right to return when forced, rather than proactively make a bold statement condemning Trump’s comments at this critical time.
As for Trump, he is ‘saying the quiet bit out loud’. We know the US’s longstanding role in undermining the self-determination of the Palestinian people. However, it has never has it so directly, so brazenly, been articulated.
It is a demonstrable call for ethnic cleansing and must be opposed by all countries that wish to be taking seriously on international law.
Featured image via the Canary
