
London protesters demand tougher action against Israel as the Palestinian death toll soars and relations between Benjamin Netanyahu and the West sours.
A large crowd of impassioned demonstrators descended on 10 Downing Street on Friday, rallying under the banner “Stop Arming Israel – Words Are Not Enough.”
They demanded the UK government immediately cease arms exports to Israel and take bolder action to address the catastrophic genocide engulfing Gaza.
Organised by pro-Palestinian groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), the protest erupted in response to what the government claims has been its most scathing official condemnation of Israel’s actions to date.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy branded Israel’s onslaught in Gaza “egregious” and the suffering of Palestinians “abominable.”
The UK suspended free trade talks with Israel on Tuesday and hit some Jewish settlers with sanctions, less than a day after vowing “concrete actions” if Israel didn’t stop its new military offensive in Gaza.
Yet, for activists and Palestinian rights defenders, mere words ring hollow as the UK remains as close ally to the apartheid regime in Tel Aviv.
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“Starmer has lost this country on the question of Palestine,” said John Rees, a British political activist, academic and journalist, addressing the crowd.
“Before this statement was issued, I knew that Starmer was a hypocrite. I knew that Lammy was a liar, and after this statement is issued, I still think that Starmer is a hypocrite, but Lammy is a liar. We demand that they turn those words into action. Stop arming Israel. They would not have said those words, they would not have had a complete collapse of their position unless we had stayed on the streets week after week, month after month, and year after year. Now in defense of Palestine, the question now is, can we do more?”
The PSC echoed that sentiment, stating: “We must demand our government take immediate action to end complicity in Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people.”
Since October 2023, more than 54,000 Palestinians have been killed and tens of thousands more wounded in Gaza, according to Gaza health authorities.
Former Labour leader turned independent MP, Jeremy Corbyn, a vocal presence at most PSC rallies, spotlighted the glaring contradiction between the government’s words and lack of moral action.
Arms to Israel surge
In September 2024, the UK government announced a partial suspension of 30 out of 350 active arms export licences to Israel, covering components for drones, military aircraft, and ground targeting systems – but crucially, excluding F-35 jet parts.
“Since the suspension of the 30 arms licenses some time ago, supply of weapons to Israel actually went up, not down under the other licenses,” Corbyn said. “We demand the truth — and we demand justice for the Palestinian people.”
Corbyn is poised to introduce a Gaza (Independent Public Inquiry) Bill in the House of Commons on 4 June, with a speech of up to 10 minutes. The bill calls for a formal probe into the UK’s role in potential war crimes in Gaza.
Critics argue the government’s tougher rhetoric is a calculated move, driven by mounting legal pressure rather than a genuine policy shift.
Campaigners have hauled the government to court, accusing it of flouting domestic and international law by supplying arms that risk enabling violations of humanitarian law, including genocide.
The case zeroes in on F-35 jet components but demands an immediate halt to all arms export licences to Israel, citing the “clear risk” of UK-made parts facilitating war crimes.
As the rally dispersed, the defiant crowd vowed to keep the pressure on, with many pledging to intensify their campaign.
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign has additionally called protests at three arms factories on Tuesday 17 June.
The protests will take on three sites that make parts for Israel’s F-35 fighter jets, which drop 2,000 pound bombs on the Gaza Strip.
They will take place at sites in Havant on the south coast, Rochester in Kent and Sheffield and “demand a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel.”