London – Saba:
More than 10,000 protesters formed a human cordon outside the British Parliament in London on Wednesday, in a majestic scene swathed in red to demand an end to arms exports to Israel.
Thirty members of Parliament, led by Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell, Ayub Khan, and Shawkat Adam, participated in part of the demonstration. The members responded to a call by major solidarity organizations in Britain, under the slogan "A red line for Palestine: Arms embargo and sanctions now," according to the Arabs in Britain website.
This massive protest was called for by the Palestinian Forum in Britain, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the Stop the War Coalition, Friends of al-Aqsa, the British Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, and the Muslim Association of Britain.
The organizers called on participants to wear red and form a human cordon around the Parliament building, a symbolic message expressing the British government's crossing of a red line by remaining silent on the crimes of the Israeli enemy.
During the protest, slogans and banners were raised calling on the British government to take a firm stance, at a time when Gaza is recording alarming numbers of casualties. More than 54,000 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the aggression in October 2023, including more than 15,000 children, according to the organizers.
The participants in the demonstration called for a comprehensive arms embargo on Israel, immediate sanctions against the Israeli government for war crimes and genocide, the resumption of UK support for UNRWA, support for ongoing investigations at the International Criminal Court, and a call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
In speeches delivered by a number of activists and religious and community figures, the speakers described the silence at this historic time as a "moral betrayal," emphasizing that the British Parliament can no longer shirk its political and humanitarian responsibility toward the tragedy in Gaza.
The demonstration was marked by a large turnout and a striking visual spectacle. Participants lined up in red, waving Palestinian flags and chanting slogans demanding justice and an end to the genocide. This scene embodied the unity of the popular stance and the clarity of the message: "Enough with the silence."
The demonstration coincided with statements by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who acknowledged that "the situation in Gaza is getting worse by the day." However, these words have not yet been accompanied by any practical steps, which the organizers considered a mere attempt to contain popular anger without actual policy change.
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