Admitting Gazan refugees would be proof that Britain has a death wish

Are Palestinian refugees allowed to return home after they've fled.

@Dulra
The 71% is from a Palestinian polling organisation, PCPSR, March 2024 response in Gaza to the question: "In your view, was Hamas decision to launch its offensive against Israel on 7 October a correct or incorrect one?" Support has risen from 57% in December 2023 (there is a reverse trend in the West Bank, i.e. started higher but falling).

Press Release: Public Opinion Poll No (91) | PCPSR

There are methodological questions of course (perhaps pressure to give the majority response has inflated the number. Conversely some 'no's may have been about tactics or timing, not the principle). But 71% is far too high for me to feel comfortable saying we should treat this as any other case. Especially because the target of some of that anger is likely to be at the UK, because of the UK's support of Israel, and at Jews in Britain. (I haven't seen any data on Palestinian views of the UK, but I have seen data on views of Jews, and it's uncomfortable. We wouldn't feel comfortable about it from white supremacists and I don't think we should feel comfortable about it in this case either).

(I'm about to go out so if I don't respond that is why).

You call it controversial, I call it, at best, ill informed and at worse, well take a guess.

Palestinians don't WANT to be "asylum seekers" in the UK or anywhere else in the world. They want to live freely, in Palestine

Tbf people in Israel probably want similar. To live safely and freely, not think about the evidenced threat from neighbours

On both sides I think people can see that.

Mn was pretty intense about Ukrainian refugees, I wonder if those posting about it the most did the scheme

Also people tend to forget a couple of years later and complain about net migration figures

Paradoxically I think helping Gazans now will make us safer in the future

Does 'us' include our UK minority Jewish communities?

This was exactly what I was thinking

Many things change in 50 years.

This is just xenophobic tripe as usual, used to stir up hatred.

Palestinians don't WANT to be "asylum seekers" in the UK or anywhere else in the world. They want to live freely, in Palestine, the land that is rightfully theirs.

I'd certainly rather get rid of all the feral white English kids who terrorise my area and take in innocent kids and families from Gaza

Oh wow, you're so cool and liberal...well done you

And would people really feel good about turning away if the alternative is the majority of the population dying? It would be a massive stain on the collective conscience. Half the population are children.

I think we're all wise enough to realise refugees being welcomed to the UK is based on skin colour and not morals.

I'd certainly rather get rid of all the feral white English kids who terrorise my area and take in innocent kids and families from Gaza.

Maybe, not sure.

I think a greater risk to the UK would be caused by doing nothing and shrugging while hundreds of thousands of Gazans die due to the actions of our allies. That is a breeding ground for radicalisation.

Paradoxically I think helping Gazans now will make us safer in future.

True! I used the wrong words, sorry.

Yeah, Brexit really shattered my illusions about democracy because I realised that the majority of the electorate aren't really capable of making well informed decisions. There isn't a better alternative, unfortunately, so we are stuck with it. I guess I'm just more resigned now to the fact that we'll only ever get governments that are as good as the electorate deserves. It's depressing really.

I wonder how many would take in someone on here. Is it more about SM posts

Is any country doing this?

it is rather racist to base immigration policy on some kind of vague goodwill towards those we consider less fortunate.

No idea what this sentence even means. There is also a difference between immigrants and refugees. An immigration policy would not cover refugees/ asylum seekers

Might we expect the intrepid Braverman to be covering this issue in a national paper soon?

Well, yes, indeed.

Edited to add: But Hamas have made what you could call a bold statement to the world. And as MN often advises, when someone shows you who they are, believe them. Just a tiny proportion of support could have catastrophic consequences.

You can say that about any refugee that comes into the UK or anyone at all for that matter.

@AdamRyan
Most refugees will have nothing to do with Hamas and will be traumatised people looking for safety.

Of course! but even if <1% were keen on supporting Hamas, it's a risk to the UK.

I've no doubt that there is a good deal of racism when it comes to how the British public in general feels about various different refugees. But I also don't think we should totally ignore the fact that different cultures/religions may find it easier/harder to assimilate.

No, I think it's perfectly acceptable to have a reasonable and rational argument about how migration should be managed, what level of migration is acceptable, which categories of migrants should be prioritised etc.

I am talking about the racists who seem to have no grasp on what our actual immigration policies are at present but feel quite at liberty to spout forth their opinions anyway; those who do not appear to understand the difference between legal and illegal migration and can't be arsed to find out; those who are unable to acknowledge the significant benefits that some immigration brings; those who are prejudiced against certain categories of immigrant because of what they look like or which god they worship; those who make fatuous statements about this island being "full"; those who contributed to the massive rise in racist hate crime after the Brexit referendum because they believed that the result gave them permission to behave badly towards anyone who didn't look like they thought "British people" should. Shall I go on?

Exactly. I'm an idealist, not a racist. But it doesn't serve anyone to be naive, and ultimately it is rather racist to base immigration policy on some kind of vague goodwill towards those we consider less fortunate.

A population that is 71% terrorist supporters is in no way typical of refugees generally or immigrants generally.
Where does this figure come from?

Calling people racist for having a different view is unlikely to win people over.
I'm not I'm calling some of the language and statements made about Palestinians racist.