"The only purpose of these endless marches is to intimidate British Jews" (part two) ***MNHQ has tweaked the title in order to make the quote more clear***

[stomachameleon]

Only the few apparently........these pictures are from todays March. Footage to follow..

@Limeandsodaontherocks I think that statement is somewhat naive.'the despicable'

Any threat and certainly one that is being discussed in parliament is credible

apple.news/AJbUP8dwVTJWPglcv3VnUGw

Protests against Mp's could be broken up as Sunak warns threats are 'unacceptable'

Article in i

Our MPs, like any of us, should not be at risk doing their jobs.
However, nor should there be demonisation of people peacefully protesting.
Wise words from MP Zarah Sultana

https://x.com/zarahsultana/status/1761008199044329607?s=46

@Polka83 I think the events of the last few days and interviews given by lots of serving MP's prove it's far more than people peacefully demonstrating.

Thanks for sharing @Dulra

As she says

‘Those overwhelmingly peaceful demonstrations are being depicted as a violent ‘mob’.

That’s a very worrying undemocratic line of argument.’

She also reminds us that the ‘Palestinian solidarity movement - demanding an immediate ceasefire and an end to the slaughter in Gaza - represents the majority view in Britain’.

And that prior concern for MPs safety has been one sided! As in where was the outrage from government for her safety over these last few months.

Who exactly has been threatening her safety?
She's certainly been extremely outspoken on the issue throughout, and made no secret as to where her sympathies lie.

Why do you ask that @SomeCatFromJapan ? Should we ask that of all the MPs or only the ones that want to see an end to the suffering of Palestinian people?

Are there any MPs who specifically wish for the continued suffering of Palestinian people?

The same Zarah Sultana who supports violent resistance against Israel?

I don't doubt for a second that Zarah Sultana experiences racist and other abuse as an MP. We know that women from ethnic minorities are one of the biggest targets. See Diane Abbott for another example.

I don't think that people should be allowed to gather at MPs houses even if they claim they are 'peaceful' protests. Targeting someone in their own home is automatically intimidating.

Agree with this.

It’s good you don’t doubt it @noblegiraffe

I don’t agree with protests at MPs houses either, I absolutely agree that is intimidation.

This is worrying.

We have had instances of MPs hurt or murdered in the past and we 're approaching a situation where this seems like it could become a distinct possibility. Any further vote in the Commons will obviously highlight those that do not vote for some sort of peacefire amendment making them potential targets. We do not have police protection as a matter of course for our MPs and we pride ourselves on open access to our elected representatives.

It must be stressful for politicians to have crowds gather outside their family homes and that is simply unacceptable and not part of legitimate protest. It is intimidation.

There are many in this country who wish to see the end of Hamas and support Israel's means to do so while wishing civilian casualties to be minimised. There is also widespread support for Israel's security concerns. This is the mainstream opinion on this country but they aren't the most vocal.

@mids2019 that may be the mainstream opinion in some parts of the country, but it isn't the case in other parts, and overall the majority of the public opinion does seem to be in favour of working towards peace and a ceasefire.

@Scirocco

A ceasefire would be a wonderful thing but it can only come about with Israel's security in mind and we have to look at its reason for moving into Gaza i.e. the destruction of Hamas and until this objective has been reached will a ceasefire be acheivable.

A ceasefire by definition requires both sides to lay down arms and how can we verify Hamas have done this? We can obviously see a cessation of Israeli action (no bombing and tanks moving out etc.) but what if Hamas? Do we expect Hamas fighter coming out on the streets laying down weapons and promising to respect an on going peace? This is the group that quite cheerfully prefer October 7th!

so you can see the complications of a ceasefire and a lasting peace has to be predicated on the removal of Hamas and this is still a goal that needs to be considered alongside hostage release and the opportunity to bring to justice any terrorists who were linked with events of that appalling day in October.

a peace must ultimately come but it is not in any way helped by protesters advocating for removal of the Israeli state of other general anti Semitic comments. That is the politics of the rabble and we are the consequences of this mob mentality when we look at potentially the dangers our politicians face.

My concern is that in the UK thousands of miles from the conflict where we have maybe a minor influence on terms of the geopolitics we are inflicting grave damage on our democratic principles by intimidating MPs and are fostering social divide by portraying Jews as the 'bad guys' in quite an appalling fashion.

Most of the people marching, demonstrating and otherwise taking action are not demanding the removal of the state of Israel or expressing anti-semitism.

Honestly, I'm getting really tired of trying to explain that the majority of people involved want a peaceful resolution, an end to killing, a solution that stabilises the Middle East for all. We aren't Hamas supporters so please stop implying or stating that we are.

All protests, political movements etc get some bad actors, people looking to cause trouble, to use it as a vehicle for spreading their own hate. Just as with any other movement, it's wrong to assume that that minority speaks for the majority. It's also wrong to assume that all organisers don't try to take action to minimise the impact of these people. Where I am, we do. We alert the police, we challenge directly, we keep more vulnerable groups of demonstrators away from them. We try to plan routes and times to consider others as well as our own needs.

We are not supporting Hamas or anti-Semitism. If somebody believes there should be a peaceful solution rather than more unnecessary deaths, if someone believes more needs to be done to minimise civilian casualties and facilitate aid getting to starving children, if someone believes non-violent negotiation is more likely to lead to the safe return of hostages, then they are welcome at our marches. Basically, unless someone is in favour of continuing to destroy Gaza and kill its people, further destabilising the Middle East for everyone, then there would be a space at our marches and events for them.

apple.news/AVML6i8fyRx2Rc-BGRkPoTQ

Article in LBC on Mp's.

It would be good if we could have a clear statement from somebody in government about the threats MPs have been facing, with a reminder that yes we live in a democracy with freedom of speech, but that doesn’t mean we can intimidate MPs.

Perhaps backed up by the police with a clear outline of the law (what is and isn’t appropriate) and potential consequences.

Even better if it comes with some recognition of the upset that the war in Gaza is causing people (yes many people I’ve spoken to find it distressing) and a message about being tolerant of eachother views. Oh and a plan for what they are going to do about the ballsed up ceasefire vote, so we know that an issue many people care about is being taken seriously.

Where are our leaders??!! Is anybody steering the ship??

Firstly- I have now heard several people working / having worked within a military capacity say that the complete elimination of Hamas is not possible.

You cannot kill an ideology. You need to calm the situation not continue to escalate it. What Israel is doing in the WB and Gaza is failing to do this. Have you actually seen images in SM of what IDF have done to Gaza and Gazans? I can’t believe anyone who sees this on their SM feed will not want an immediate ceasefire and negotiation.

”Two thirds of Britons (66%) likewise say that Israel should be prepared to enter into peace negotiations with Hamas, up five points since November.
Only 13% think Israel should continue to take military action (down six points), and there has likewise been a five point decrease in the number of people who say that Israel’s attack on Gaza is justified, down to 24%.”

https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/48675-british-attitudes-to-the-israel-gaza-conflict-february-2024-update#:~:text=Desire%20for%20a%20ceasefire%20has%20grown&text=Two%20thirds%20of%20Britons%20(66,up%20five%20points%20since%20November.

You can equally say the extreme right wing comments coming from Israeli government are not at all helpful- not least as their words are unequivocal in what they mean and are backed by bombs.

Without minimising the impact of people protesting outside someone’s home, there are concerns that this has been used as an excuse to subvert democratic conventions for the benefit of Keri Starmer’ Labour government. Over 64 MPs have signed a non-confidence vote against the speaker.

Although in the words of the speaker Hoyle - a ground offensive in Gaza would be a catastrophe and it must not happen.

If we do want a proper functioning democracy- we also need freedom to protest and freedom of speech within legal constraints.

In relation to the intimidation of MPs unfortunately this is not something new and elected representatives are subject to threats and intimidation daily. I am surprised people are able to get away with protesting outside people's private residence without arrest, but I have always been surprised that the press seem able to doorstep politicians that seems unique to the UK. I think the level of intimidation can't be looked at just in relation to the Israel/ Palestine conflict. There is a huge cohort of people very angry with the current tory party and I think this anger is also fuelling the current actions towards MPs I think it's to simplistic to look at it as one issue revolt.

The protesting at MPs' homes even Sunak's in Yorkshire when he was away and people illegally climbed on his roof are a step too far (as are protests right by abortion clinics where women are going in for what is often the hardest decision of their life). There need to be fair limits on protest. I am also against those who hold up motorways and throw paint over art works in galleries. There is a limit in a free society. However I suppose planned protests such as at speaker's corner and even people planning to burn holy books in public which is allowed in wise parts of Europe where the police will even go along to ensure you can exercise your right to do so in a free society in a public street.

the balance between freedom of protestors and rights of the rest of us (never mind the huge police cost of the recent marches) is hard to get right.

I also know the police have a difficult job but they do need to intervene to stop people with face coverings on the protests as that is illegal and yet the police don't seem to do so in all cases.

I also know the police have a difficult job but they do need to intervene to stop people with face coverings on the protests as that is illegal and yet the police don't seem to do so in all cases.

I agree that people covering their face is intimidating and shouldn't be allowed but
I respect the fact that police have such a difficult job in this situation and sometimes they have to let some things like that go in the interest of maintaining peace a bit like a parent picking their battles