Proscribe genocide, not protest
JVL Introduction
Hundreds gathered for a rally opposite Downing Street on 5th August in advance of delivering a letter to Keir Starmer and Yvette Cooper with the clear message Proscribe Genocide, not Protest, and demands for immediate action.
It was signed by over 200 Jewish individuals including Sir Geoffrey Bindman, Andrew Feinstein, Prof Jacqueline Rose, Michael Rosen and Gillian Slovo.
The rally heard short talks, poems and songs as speaker after speaker called out the UK government for its complicity in the genocide, including its active involvement in supporting the Israeli war machine with both materials and intelligence.
The text of the letter is posted below.
While the letter has gone, if you are Jewish you can still add your name to it as a general expression of support.
You can read a number of reports of the event here, all published on 5 August:
Jewish Britons decry ban on Palestine Action as ‘illegitimate, unethical’, Al Jazeera
Britain is an ‘active participant’ in Gaza genocide, say leading British Jews, Morning Star
Hundreds of British Jews condemn ban on Palestine Action as ‘unethical’, Middle East Eye
Police refuse to take Jewish delegates’ letter against genocide and proscription to Number 10, Skwawkbox
More than 300 Jewish figures sign letter opposing ‘unethical’ Palestine Action proscription, Jewish Chronicle
Police warn of mass arrests if Palestine Action protest goes ahead, Guardian (published on 4 Aug before the rally, reference to the letter in the middle of the article)
RK
Letter to PM and Home Secretary
5th August 25
To the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper
Proscribe genocide, not protest
We are Jews who oppose the genocide by Israel against the Palestinian people, the reality of which is agonisingly on show every day on radio, television and social media. Opposing the brutality of genocide, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing taking place in Gaza and the West Bank, including taking direct action, is not antisemitic. Nor is it terrorism. We consider the proscription of Palestine Action as illegitimate and unethical.
We oppose genocide as human beings. We oppose it because we are Jews who have learnt from our history to be vigilant against injustice and stand up for justice for all people, everywhere. For us, ‘Never again’ does not mean only crimes against Jews, let alone criticism of Israel, but never again by anyone to anyone.
The International Court of Justice identified Israel’s behaviour in Gaza as possible genocide. It is now widely recognised as actual genocide. Dozens and dozens of analyses by respected human-rights organisations and genocide scholars throughout the world have all now reached the same conclusion. We draw your attention to three of the examples, the late July 2025 B’Tselem “Our Genocide” publication, the report “Amnesty International investigation concludes Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza” on 5th December 2024 and Israel historian Omer Bartov’s reluctant acceptance of this view in the New York Times in “I’m a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It. “(15th July 2025)
Further we also note the ICJ’s insistence that once it had identified the risk of genocide by Israel, the obligation on other states was to ensure they were not complicit, to halt genocide if it had happened, and to prevent it if it looked likely to happen.
The actions of the UK government expand on a disturbing trend of attempts by successive governments to restrict peaceful protests intended to save lives. Lengthy prison sentences have been given to climate protesters as well as those opposed to arms sales to Israel. It has made the UK among the most repressive countries in Europe according to UN representatives, especially since the proscription of Palestine Action.
Article 10 of the Human Rights Act specifies the right to freedom of expression which includes the right to take non-violent direct action in accordance with one’s conscience even where this involves civil disobedience. This has long been a route to achieving progressive change in society, for example in the courage of the suffragettes. Shortly before the debate on proscribing Palestine Action, many MPs were pictured wearing sashes expressing solidarity with the suffragette movement amongst whom the use of direct action was extensive. Direct action was also an integral part of the civil rights movement in the USA, and the anti-apartheid movement in the UK. It has been an important feature of the struggle to limit ongoing climate catastrophes by protesters around the world as supported by the Aarhus convention which the UK signed in 2005.
Reassurances have been given that the right to protest is protected:
Dan Jarvis, a Minister of State for the Home Office, assured MPs in the House of Commons on 2nd July:
“Proscribing Palestine Action will not impinge the right to protest. People have always been able to protest lawfully or express support for Palestine, and they can continue to do so.”
These words were reinforced by Justice Chamberlain when an interim injunction against the order was sought.
“97. It will remain lawful for the claimant and other persons who were members of PA prior to proscription to continue to express their opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza and elsewhere, including by drawing attention to what they regard as Israel’s genocide and other serious violations of international law. They will remain legally entitled to do so in private conversations, in print, on social media and at protests. Even if their protests take the form of direct action which involves criminality, the fact that they were previously members of an organisation which is now proscribed would not as a matter of law aggravate their criminal conduct. (our emphasis) It follows that it is hyperbole to talk of the claimant or others being “gagged” in this respect (as the claimant has alleged). They could not incur criminal liability based on their past association with a group which was not proscribed at the time.”
In spite of this, we have seen some extraordinary police action, including this arrest involving Private Eye where a protestor merely carried a poster image of a satirical cartoon previously published without challenge in the magazine and in Kent where Police threatened to arrest a protestor for holding a Palestinian flag. We note the Kent police response, justifying an intervention of theirs, said in words quoted in Haroon Siddique’s Guardian report:
“Under the Terrorism Act it is a criminal offence to carry or display items that may arouse reasonable suspicion that an individual is a member or supporter of a proscribed organisation such as Palestine Action.
The offending “items” in that instance were a Palestinian flag, the utterance “Free Palestine”, and a poster saying, “Israel is committing genocide’.
We believe that such extraordinary actions show that immediate explanation and clarification to the police are required.
The government should stop deflecting attention from genocide by linking non-violent protest to terrorism. Instead, we call on your government to use its influence to help to end genocide and bring about justice for the Palestinian people. It should immediately recognise the state of Palestine and initiate meaningful sanctions such as:
- Suspending the UK-Israel trade agreement.
- Ending all exports used by the Israeli military in weapons or otherwise.
- Ending all UK military and intelligence collaboration with Israel.
- Banning imports from Israel.
- Questioning the Israeli ambassador to the UK about her support for genocide.
- Informing UK citizens participating in the Israeli military that they risk prosecution for war crimes.
It is time to end the government’s handwringing over the level of slaughter and suffering in Gaza and the West Bank, mixed with tacit support to the Israeli state. The United Kingdom is not powerless in the face of Israel’s breaches of international law and we call on the government to take the tough diplomatic, political and economic action to help end genocide, occupation, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing.
If you are Jewish you can still add your name
Yours faithfully,
LEAD SIGNATORIES
Sir Geoffrey Bindman KC
Tony Booth
Andrew Feinstein
Rob Ferguson
Joseph Finlay
Dr. Agnes Kory
Richard Kuper
Mike Leigh
Leah Levane
Jenny Manson
Angie Mindel
Gillian Mosely
Prof. Jacqueline Rose
Michael Rosen
Alexei Sayle
Gillian Slovo
Naomi Wayne
OTHER SIGNATORIES
Helen Abeles
Marion Adler
Dr. Katharina (Amanda) Adler MD
Sinde Astraea
Patricia Barnett
Judy Baron
Graham Bash
Lucy Baxandall
Linda Bernhardt
Alan Bernstein
Jenny Bloom
Carla Bloom
Louise Bloom
Haim Bresheeth
Tania Bronstein
Peter Buckman
David Cannon
Russell Caplan
Sylvia Cohen
Zoe Cohen
Norma Cohen
Robert Cohen
Ron Cohen
Peter Cohen
Prof. Andrew Colman
Judith Cravitz
Jonathan Cronin
Mike Cushman
Prof. Miriam E. David
Hilary de Santos
Shusha na Devorah
Naomi Diamond
Brian Douieb
Elizabeth Dresner
Prof. Rebecca Earle
Prof. Barbara Einhorn
Dr. Naomi Elton
Gene Feder
Deborah Fink
Sylvia Finzi
Viv Fogel
Erika Fox
Dr. Alexander Franklin
Carolyn Gelenter
Harvey Gillman
Murray Glickman
David Goldberg
Ruth Goldberg
John Goodman
Simon Goodman
Stuart Goodman
Tony Graham
Helen Green
Tony Greenstein
Miriam Greenwood
Dr. Rebeka h Gronowski
Jaqueline Gruhn
Peter Hall
Alison Harris
Trilby Harrison James
Abe Hayeem
Katrina Henriques
Denis Herbstein
Jacob Heringham
Andrew Hornung
Harold Immanuel
Kim Jacobson
Emily John
Dan Judelson
Louisa Kaplin
Stephen Kapos
Ruth Kaufman OBE
Nicolas Kent
Liz Kessler
Monash Kessler
David Keys
Brenda Kirsch
Rosina Knight
Eleonore Kofman
Angie Kotler
Ann Kramer
Stevie Krayer
John Lagnado
Madeleine Landauer
Bernice Laschinger
Dr. Felicity Laurence
Howard Leader
Anne Lee
Cathy Leech
Anthony Lerman
Hemdat Lerman
Betty Levene
Les Levidow
Prof. Tim Levine
Prof. Ruth Levitas
Daniel Levy
Charles Lewsen
Sonja Linden
Adrian Litvinoff
Miles Litvinoff
Robert Lizar
Prof. Tim Lobstein
Prof. Yosefa Loshitzky
Anna Lowenstein
John Lynes
Dr. Jessica Manson
Max Marnau
Helen Martins
Katrina Mayer
Howard Mendick
Dr. Laura Miller
Chris Mohr
Elizabeth Morley
Carole Mosco
Idit Nathan
Yael Navaro
Diana Neslen
Mike Newman
Ines Newman
David Nissen
Adrian Noble
Paul Oestreicher
Margeret Owen OBE
Prof. Naomi Pfeffer
Miranda Pinch
A. M. Poppy
Alison Prager
Dr. Judy Rabinowitz Price
Carroline Raine
Roland Rance
Rachel Richardson
Marion Roberts
Prof. Paul Robinson
Ben Rogaly
Shirley Rose
Prof. Rachel Rosen
Dr. Marsha Rosengarten
Prof. Jonathan Rosenhead
Prof. Douglas Ross
Leon Rosselson
Sabby Sagall
Caroline Salinger
Prof. Raphael Salkie
Marsha Sanders
Esther Saraga
Chloe Sayer
Prof. Justin Schlosberg
James Schneider
Mike Scott
Amanda Sebestyen
Glyn Secker
Irene Sedler
Prof. Vic Seidler
Anna Sherbany
Liz Silver
Roger Silverman
Mike Simons
Prof. Ludi Simpson
Lyndall Stein
Juliet Steyn
Helen Stollar
Judy Struys
Salma Sulemanji
Prof. Adam Sutcliffe
Emma Tait
Gili Tal
Inbar Tamari
Daniel Taylor
Dr. Norman Temple
Theresa Thornhill
Alan Tuckman
Joseph Tweg
P.G. Vaspe
Philip Wadler
Bob Walker
Ivan Wels
Martin White
Charlotte Williams
Dr. George Wilmers
Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi
Geradine Winkler
Prof. Richard Wistreich
Michael Wright
Aurora Yaacov
Mike Zeitlin
Jewish Orgnisations
Jewish Voice for Labour
Jewish Network for Palestine
Hasting Jews for Justice
I am pretty sure I signed this letter but don’t see my name. Could there be more of us?
There could Mica and more are coming in. Apologies if you were left off.
I am sure I signed too
I thought I had signed, too. At any rate, I’m in your photo, center right in the straw sunhat.
I thought I’d signed too. Add my name, please.
Well done
I would like my name to be added to the list of signatures, please.
I add my name to the above letter.
It was coming, I guess. We have fed the bully whom we allowed to take charge. I am ashamed. The only good that come from it is that Israel is seen for what it is. I’m sad for those who are there, equally appalled. As for those in the USA.
I saw the perfect antídote to the Palestine Action proscription; a poster simply saying “Support Palestine! Action now! ” I think the bearer got arrested. Only a fool could identify that as a call to support a group called “Palestine Action”. It’s like saying that “Support Israel! Is commiting a genocide ethically acceptable to most Americans?” is in fact promoting a group called “Israel is commiting a genocide” which is nonsense as we all know.
It would be good if this were correct. It is stupid but it is also risky
Shameful and inhumane of the Israeli Goverment to kill women and children and starve the living of food and medicine. It’s genocide!
I fully endorse and agree with the views expressed in this letter.
Agree with the sentiment of the letter
It is a good letter. Whether it will do any good whatsoever is another matter. I am a refugee from Vienna, who arrived in July 1939, lucky to flee the Nazis. I am absolutely unable to get my head around the fact that after suffering the most evil and most huge genocide in history, the very children and grandchildren of these same people, humiliated and murdered, are able to perpetrate this sort of atrocity on a people within, not only their midst, but who were there first! At least in modern times. It is all but impossible to read the news, for the sheer horror of it.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity of signing the updated version of your letter from 5th August. I have read the update and would like to sign it. I am a non-Jewish supporter of JFJP and am very grateful for your the thorough and balanced information you provide in this terrible and appalling situation. I hope to attend many protests and participate in campaigns whenever I can, in the hope that political powers will respond and stop the suffering.
I fully agree with the contents of this letter.
As the non-Jewish (Quaker) descendent of Jewish grandparents and uncle who were killed in the Holocaust, and the daughter of parents who had to flee the Nazi genocide, I would like to offer my enormous thanks for this absolutely excellent letter and to add my name to it in principle.
Thanks for organising this powerful protest letter
Shame on the government for not receiving it!
As a non Jewish supporter of JFJFP I am inspired by this letter and the solidarity with Palestine Action that it conveys. Every step like this one gives me hope and confidence that justice for Palestinians is an attainable goal.