The real destination of ‘Free Palestine’
A crowd gathered on Thursday evening outside the Israeli Embassy in London for a vigil organised by Campaign Against Antisemitism to honour two diplomats who were brutally murdered on Wednesday night in Washington DC.
Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, who both worked for the Israeli Embassy in the United States, were shot outside Capital Jewish Museum as they were leaving an event.
The shooting, by a suspect who shouted “Free Palestine!” at the scene and who later reportedly confessed to police, has sent shockwaves around the world.
The growing extremism of the ‘Free Palestine’ movement has been a ticking time bomb which has been waiting to explode.
This is what they mean when they yell ‘Globalise the Intifada’ on the streets of capital cities, on our campuses and at trade union meetings.
Addressing the crowd in London, Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “They were a couple, and had plans to travel to Jerusalem next week, where Yaron intended to propose to Sarah. That is what could have been. That is what should have been. Instead, their lives were stolen, and now, that proposal will never come. The family they would have built will never be realised. They were gunned down at the very gates of a Jewish museum — a place meant to preserve memory and culture — by a man shouting ‘Free Palestine.’ This was not peace. It was violence. This was not protest. It was murder.”
Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis then addressed the crowd: “We will never lose our hope, and we have every reason to be filled with hope, and that is because we know that the peace we are committed to, the justice that we want to see in the world, will ultimately triumph over those who seek to kill and to murder.”
A statement from Tzipi Hotovely, Ambassador of Israel to the Court of St. James’s, was read on her behalf, as she was unable to join for security reasons: “At a time when tensions remain high, and Jewish communities are feeling vulnerable, this incident is a sobering reminder of the threats we face. All diplomats, and representatives of embassies across the world, should be able to work without fear for their lives or safety, as they work to achieve greater cooperation amongst nations. Last night’s events are a harsh reminder of the virulent antisemitism we are still seeing, in the US, here in the UK, and across the world.”
A two-minute silence for the victims was then observed, following which the crowd was led in song and prayer by Cantor Aaron Isaac. Attendees then sang the British national anthem and the Israeli national anthem.
We are locked in a battle for the soul of the West.
It’s long past time that our leaders and police chiefs here in Britain woke up and took firm action, otherwise these will not be the last lives taken by these fanatical extremists dressed up as peaceniks.
May their memory be a blessing.
Kneecap member charged following action by Campaign Against Antisemitism
A member of the Belfast rap trio Kneecap has been charged with a terrorism offence.
Liam O’Hanna, 27, was charged by post with displaying a flag in support of Hizballah, a proscribed terrorist organisation, at a concert at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town on 21st November last year.
Mr O’Hanna is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court next month.
Footage of the concert in question appeared to show a member of the band, draped in a Hizballah flag, shouting to the crowd, “Up Hamas, up Hizballah.”
In a statement following considerable backlash, the group said: “Let us be unequivocal: we do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hizballah.”
Yet just one day after the charge was made public, Kneecap performed at the 100 Club in London. During the show, Mr O’Hanna claimed the group was being used as a “scapegoat” to avoid “talking about the real issue”.
His transparent deflection tactics may fool some within Kneecap’s unquestioning fanbase – but not us.
Shame on the 100 Club for putting profit before principle by hosting the band so soon after the charge.
Those who continue to associate themselves with Kneecap make clear that they care little for ethics or the concerns of Jews worldwide, for whom the threats posed by Hamas and Hizballah are not theoretical – they are existential.
Despite all of this, the group was still allowed to headline at Wide Awake Festival at Brockwell Park on Friday.
Following our calls on festival organisers to cancel Kneecap’s performance, Wide Awake Festival said in a statement that it was looking forward to “staging another unforgettable event”.
Those who oppose extremism will not forget this. This decision was a disgrace.
A welcome development
Abu Wadei, whose real name is understood to be Mosab Al Qasas, has been sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment.
He was sentenced following his guilty plea to attempting to enter the country on 6th March without leave or valid entry clearance.
The jailing of Mr Al Qasas after we revealed that he was part of a violent Hamas-endorsed unit is an extremely welcome development. However, this is only in respect to charges relating to immigration breaches.
We have called for the Crown Prosecution Service to bring terrorism charges against him as well, as we believe that he has committed serious offences and that it is in the interests of national security to bring a prosecution.
Failure to do so risks signalling that Britain is a safe haven for terrorists. For now, he is in prison, but we need clarity on what happens once he has served his term: will he be deported or will he be at liberty in Britain?
Will he face justice for his potential involvement in terrorist activity abroad, or will he walk free?
The general public and British Jews in particular must urgently be told the answers to these questions.
The Crown Prosecution Service must bring terrorism charges against him.
Are Hamas’ lawyers acting with honesty and integrity?
We have reported Franck Magennis and Daniël Michaël Grütters to the Bar Standards Board (BSB).
Mr Magennis and Mr Grütters are barristers who are working for Hamas on its desperate bid to get the group deproscribed in the UK.
Upon reviewing the application for deproscription, it is evident that Mr Magennis and Mr Grütters knowingly or recklessly presented, on behalf of Hamas, a false and misleading description of the 7th October 2023 massacre.
The Hamas false version of events denies that Hamas carried out a deliberate massacre of civilians in Israel, despite the mountain of evidence to the contrary — this deeply offensive assertion evokes Holocaust denial, in that it denies the veracity of a barbaric, deliberate mass-murder of Jews which is the subject of comprehensive, incontrovertible evidence.
It is accordingly a particularly reprehensible assertion for a barrister to make, even on instructions, knowing it to be untrue.
Rather than being incidental to the application, the Hamas false version of the events is central to the application.
Mr Magennis and Mr Grütters have knowingly prepared and presented a submission to the Secretary of State containing at its core a set of egregious falsehoods, which we charge breaches the requirement that all barristers “must act with honesty, and with integrity”.
The BSB must now open an investigation into Mr Magennis and Mr Grütters.
We have already reported Hamas’ solicitor, Fahad Ansari, to the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
We are hiring!
Can you write good copy? Can you turn academic research into impactful messaging? Do you want to help combat rising antisemitism?
We’re looking for a Communications and Research Manager to join us in the fight against antisemitism.
For more information and to apply, visit antisemitism.org/jobs.
Are you a medical professional, or a recent patient?
We are collecting testimonies on antisemitism in the medical field.
We are interested to hear from doctors and other medical practitioners, staff, patients and anyone else who has encountered antisemitism in medicine over the past year and a half.
If you have been affected, please e-mail us at [email protected] with the subject: “Medical”.
It is vital that victims make their voices heard. We cannot raise awareness of antisemitism in medicine without your help.
We understand the significance of professional and privacy concerns, which is why victims trust us to amplify their voices and get justice. Please do not hesitate to contact us.
Last week, the true destination of the ‘Free Palestine’ movement was revealed to the world. Jews across the globe were left reeling in horror as they were faced with the news of Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky’s murder.
It is times like this when we are reminded of just how vital the fight against antisemitism is for the future of British Jews and indeed the West.
This is a battle that we cannot lose. We will continue to do everything we can to fight for our future.
Photo credit: Campaign Against Antisemitism
