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OPINION: Cambridge City Labour councillors’ statement on Israel-Palestine Conflict
Cambridge is a City of Sanctuary; Islamophobia, Anti-Semitism and hatred of any kind have no place in our city.
Cambridge Labour City Councillors stand in solidarity with the innocent civilians of both Israel and Palestine and call for an immediate ceasefire. We utterly condemn the massacre in Israel of 1,400 people, including babies, children, young people, and British citizens, and we feel the pain and fear that this has caused in the wider Jewish community.
We utterly condemn the taking of hostages by Hamas, including babies and children, and we call for the hostages to be released.
We utterly condemn the ongoing bombardment of Gaza and the massacre of over 9,000 Palestinians, including healthcare workers, journalists, aid workers and thousands of children since the 7th of October.
We utterly condemn the siege of Gaza, which is preventing over two million civilians including babies, children, pregnant women, healthcare workers, the sick and the injured from accessing the water, food, fuel, and medical care needed for their survival.
We utterly condemn the daily attacks by Israeli Settlers who have killed over 100 Palestinians in the West Bank since the Hamas attack and condemn all acts of violence by Hamas.
The Labour Party is committed to the defence and security of the British people and to co-operating in European institutions, the United Nations, the Commonwealth and other international bodies to secure peace, freedom, democracy, economic security, and environmental protection for all. *
With this aim we call for an immediate ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid to prevent any further loss of life and to ensure that the human rights of all Palestinians and Israelis are protected.
Further violence will not solve this decades long conflict, we call on Heads of State and Government around the world to demonstrate leadership at this crucial time. We must support a political peace process in the Middle East and avoid actions that could spill over into further bloodshed.
As local councillors we stand together with the residents of the city of Cambridge who have been deeply affected by this terrible violence and loss of life. This conflict has a serious risk of spreading in the Middle East and within communities around the world. Cambridge is a City of Sanctuary; Islamophobia, Anti-Semitism and hatred of any kind have no place in our city.
* Labour Party Rule Book Clause IV (page 3)
