Jewish and British leaders say that a pro-Palestinian rally on Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day, should raise concerns for Brits who value their free and open society.
“Those who March against Israel are almost always opposed to many aspects of a free society, which Remembrance Sunday is about defending,” said Gary Mond, chairman of the National Jewish Assembly. “They often oppose Christianity, capitalism, freedom, and the rule of law. The Jews and Israel are simply an initial target.
“That is why fundamentalist Islamism sometimes uses the expression – first the Saturday people, then the Sunday people.”
More than 300,000 people joined the pro-Palestinian rally, which turned violent and resulted in around 140 arrests. The protestors chanted “free, free Palestine,” “ceasefire now,” and the offensive “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” refrain.
The protests were partially planned by former Hamas chief Muhammad Kathem Sawalhi, the Telegraph reported.
Other planners included Convoy4Palestine and 1Vision, according to the Jewish Chronicle. These convoys were responsible for driving through the Jewish neighborhood of Golders Green in 2021 while calling for the rape of Jewish women.
The march was both an insult to British society – Armistice Day marks the final agreement that ended World War I, in which 876,084 were killed between 1914 and 1918 – and a threat to the local Jewish community. These marches, according to retired British Army Officer Col. Richard Kemp, that are against the British government’s policy to support Israel “are also an attempt to intimidate British Jewry.”
He added that the march was an “insult to the memories of those who died fighting the kind of violent totalitarianism that the protesters support.”
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had described the events as “disrespectful,” although they were allowed to go through.
