Transport for London (TfL) has censored posters highlighting Palestinian objections to the Balfour Declaration, when Britain promised to establish a Jewish state in Palestine.
The advertising campaign, called “Make It Right”, was designed to mark the 100th anniversary of the colonial-era document that led to the creation of Israel at the expense of Palestinians.
The posters include images of life before and after 1948, when Palestinians were forced from their homes during the an-Nakba (Catastrophe).
Organisers had hoped to see the adverts displayed at key underground stations and on busses.
Manuel Hassassian, the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, has accused TfL of censorship.
He said in a statement: “Palestinian history is a censored history. There has been a 100-year-long cover-up of the British Government’s broken promise, in the Balfour Declaration, to safeguard the rights of the Palestinians when it gave away their country to another people.
“TfL’s decision is not surprising as it is, at best, susceptible to or, at worst, complicit with, all the institutional forces and active lobby groups which continuously work to silence the Palestinian narrative.
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“There may be free speech in Britain on every issue under the sun but not on Palestine,” added Hassassian.”
TfL claimed that the campaign is politically controversial, and a spokesman said they rejected the adverts because they “did not comply fully with our guidelines”.
Last year, Palestinian leaders, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, have requested that Britain apologises for the Balfour Declaration.
The UK Government refused to issue an apology in April this year, saying it had helped to establish a “homeland for the Jewish people in the land to which they had such strong historical and religious ties was the right and moral thing to do, particularly against the background of centuries of persecution”.
The government did, however, recognise that the declaration should have protected Arab political rights.
Protests will take place across Britain next month as Theresa May and her Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, celebrate the centenary.
