MPs and peers sign letter urging UK government to ban arms sales to Israel - 50,000+ people have signed our petition calling on the UK government to stop the UK Israel arms trade. Israel has killed 33,000 Palestinians and 200 aid workers including 3 UK citizens 😢 Sign the petition to demand the UK to Stop Arming Israel.
In 1917 the Rothschild the trillion dollar family that invented modern day banking used their money power and influence to strike a secret deal with the British government, that deal eventually led to the creation of the country of Israel 😢
Nathaniel Charles Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, was a British peer, investment banker and a member of the Rothschild banking family, dies 26 February 2024 age 87.
In 1948, the State of Israel was created. For Jews around the world, it is the end of 2000 years of exile. For the 700,000 Palestinians present on these lands, this is the beginning of injustice 😢
Video 1 - From Nazism to the Creation of Israel: from One Exile to Another
Video 2 - Ariel Bernstein a former IDF soldier now campaigns for peace and against the occupation
Video 3 - How was Israel formed and the rise of Zionism, covering events up to 2023
Palestinians desperately need us to take action HERE and NOW - please donate what you can to PSC, Israel is raining bombs on the people of Gaza - thousands of Palestinians have already been killed in Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment 😢 PSC is working day and night to pressure UK leaders to call for an immediate ceasefire.
Historic Palestine
Historic Palestine is located in the Middle East, in a region bordering Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, and the Mediterranean Sea. Muslims, Christians, and Jews had lived alongside one another for centuries under the rule of the Ottoman (Turkish) empire. There were growing calls for Palestinian independence during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries from a population which in 1914 was 84% Muslim, 11% Christian, and 6% Jewish.
During the First World War, Britain pledged to support the “complete and final liberation” of the Arab peoples under Ottoman rule, in exchange for their participation in the war and revolt against the Ottomans. In fact, Britain and France had secretly agreed to divide the Ottoman territories of the Middle East between themselves. The Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916, one of the major secret agreements during the war, secured British control of Iraq, Palestine, Jordan, and the Trucial states of the Arab Gulf; while France received Syria, Lebanon, and Turkish Cilicia.
Then, in 1917, during the partitioning of the Ottoman empire, British foreign secretary Arthur Balfour promised to help facilitate the creation of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Britain occupied Palestine in 1917 and remained until 1948.
In 1947, Britain approached the newly founded and then Western-dominated UN to determine Palestine’s future. Despite the Jewish people only making up a third of the population, the UN recommended creating a Jewish state on 56% of the land. The Palestinians refused to accept the partition of their homeland, yet in 1948 Israel was established unilaterally. By 1949, the Nakba (“catastrophe”) had resulted in the ethnic cleansing of two-thirds of the Palestinian population, with Israel ruling over 78% of the land.
The West Bank and Gaza Strip have been under illegal Israeli military rule since they were occupied in the 1967 war, and today are referred to as the “Occupied Palestinian Territories”. East Jerusalem was also annexed illegally by Israel in 1967. For over 60 years the Palestinians have been denied the right to self-determination and statehood.
The refugee issue
About 750,000 Palestinians were forced into exile in 1948–49, and during the June 1967 war a further 325,000 Palestinians became refugees. Under UN Resolution 194, the Palestinians have the right to return to their homes, but Israel has always refused to implement the Resolution. Today over 6 million Palestinians live as refugees, with hundreds of thousands of them still living in overcrowded refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza, and in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.
Life under occupation
Today there are more than 250 illegal Israeli settlements, housing over 700,000 settlers, within the Occupied Territories. The separation wall in the West Bank, construction of which began in 2002, cuts deep into Palestinian land and, along with the “settler only” roads, cuts off many communities from water supplies, hospitals, and their agricultural lands. The residents face severe travel restrictions and for many it is impossible to enter Jerusalem or to travel abroad. Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians, both within Israel and in the Occupied Territories, including practices of land expropriation, unlawful killings, forced displacement, restrictions on movement, and denial of citizenship rights, is recognised as amounting to the crime of apartheid by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the UN’s Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, among others.
Palestinians are continually under attack from the Israeli occupying forces and are increasingly harassed by settlers, who attack farmers and steal their land. Collective punishments, such as prolonged curfews and house demolitions are frequently imposed.
The Palestinians who remained in what is today the state of Israel, as non-Jewish members of a Jewish country, also face discrimination in all areas of Palestine and are considered to be second class citizens.
For more information on the historical background and the situation today, go to PSC’s factsheets
Palestinians are continually under attack from the Israeli occupying forces and are increasingly harassed by settlers, who attack farmers and steal their land. Collective punishments, such as prolonged curfews and house demolitions are frequently imposed.
The Palestinians who remained in what is today the state of Israel, as non-Jewish members of a Jewish country, also face discrimination in all areas of Palestine and are considered to be second class citizens.
For more information on the historical background and the situation today, go to PSC’s factsheets
Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC)
Is a community of people working together for peace, equality, and justice and against racism, occupation, and colonisation. Together we are the biggest organisation in the UK dedicated to securing Palestinian human rights. PSC brings people from all walks of life together to campaign for Palestinian rights and freedom.
We are united in our belief that Israel’s flouting of international law, continued military occupation of Palestine, and systematic discrimination against Palestinians is unacceptable; so together we are taking action.
We are taking on corporations that profit from the occupation, our government that still refuses to hold Israel to account, and the media that does not report the truth. And we are building a mass movement for Palestine in the UK.
We believe in people power. The more of us standing together, raising the call for justice and equality, the louder our voice. We know that united we can take on the might of governments, corporations, and the media – and we can win.
Our Patrons
“I am a patron of PSC for more than one reason. Firstly, as a Palestinian I am committed to supporting all efforts to help and promote the Palestinian cause, whether by individuals or groups. Secondly, I appreciate the work of all those who strive to put this cause before the public eye. And thirdly, PSC has carried out these responsibilities more than adequately, and for that I owe them my help and gratitude. I urge everyone else who cares about the Palestinians to support PSC too.” - Dr Ghada Karmi
John Austin
Sir Geoffrey Bindman QC
Victoria Brittain
Julie Christie
Caryl Churchill
Jeremy Corbyn MP
Pat Gaffney
Rev Garth Hewitt
Ghada Karmi
Ken Loach
Lowkey
Kika Markham
Professor Nur Masalha
Karma Nabulsi
Dr Ilan Pappe
Hilary & Steven Rose
Dr Salman, Abu-Sitta
Alexi Sayle
Keith Sonnet
Adhaf Soueif
David Thompson
Dr Antoine Zahlan
Benjamin Zephaniah
Betty Hunter - Honorary President - See full list of Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) Patrons
What does PSC believe?
Palestinians should have the same rights and freedoms as anyone else. But right now they don’t.
We believe no one should have their rights denied or be treated differently because of their ethnicity or religion. But this is happening to the Palestinian people at the hands of the Israeli government right now.
We believe there can be a peaceful and just end to the decades of occupation and oppression, one that respects the rights and dignity of Palestinians and Israelis. But until this happens, we have a responsibility to stand up for Palestinian rights.
We believe that change in the UK can affect change in Palestine. The Israeli occupation can only survive as long as the international community supports it. As a key ally of Israel the UK is well placed to have a significant impact.
We believe that when people stand together we have the power to change the course of history. So we are building a mass movement for Palestine, with people from all walks of life. Together we are standing up to our government, big business, and the media making it clear that occupation, the flouting of international law, and state-sanctioned discrimination are not acceptable.
What are PSC's aims?
PSC campaigns for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine and for peace and justice for everyone living in the region.
Specifically PSC was established to campaign:
PSC is powered by donations from our members and supporters, without which we simply wouldn’t exist. We ask our supporters to donate to our work so that we can keep campaigning for as long as we need to.
Specifically PSC was established to campaign:
- In support of the rights of the Palestinian people and their struggle to achieve these rights.
- Against the oppression and dispossession suffered by the Palestinian people.
- To promote Palestinian civil society in the interests of democratic rights and social justice.
- To oppose Israel’s occupation and its aggression against neighbouring states.
- For the right of self-determination for the Palestinian people.
- For the right of return of the Palestinian people.
- For the immediate withdrawal of the Israeli state from the occupied Palestinian territory.
- In opposition to racism, including anti-Jewish prejudice and Islamophobia, and the apartheid and Zionist nature of the Israeli state.
PSC is powered by donations from our members and supporters, without which we simply wouldn’t exist. We ask our supporters to donate to our work so that we can keep campaigning for as long as we need to.
We don’t accept money from governments, political parties, or big businesses so we are truly independent in our campaigning.
We are not a charity. As a political campaign we are not eligible for the financial benefits charitable status brings, which makes it even harder to raise our funds. However, political campaigning is vital to help bringing about a solution, so Palestinians can determine their own future and no longer rely on international aid or charitable support.
What do you spend your money on?
Campaigns cost money – lobbying politicians, challenging government policy, holding the media to account, taking on corporations, and building a mass movement can’t be done for free.
The majority of our funds are spent directly on our campaigns: organising protests, meetings, lobbies, and vigils; and paying for technology, leaflets, equipment, our office, and small staff team.
As a grassroots organisation, every donation we receive makes a big difference to what we are able to do.
Are you linked to a political party or faction?
No. PSC is not aligned to any political party either here in the UK or in Palestine. We work with political parties in the UK from across the spectrum to achieve real change in UK government policy towards Palestine and Israel.
We do not support a particular political party in Palestine. We believe in democracy; it is for the Palestinian people to determine their own future. We are campaigning for Palestinian self-determination and are not involved in internal Palestinian politics.
We are a member-led democratic organisation – so our campaigns are set by you, join us today!
Each year we have our Annual General Meeting (AGM) where we decide our campaigning priorities for the coming year. We also work with our colleagues in Palestine, listening to them about what they think our campaigning priorities should be.
We are guided by our aims (see above) and all campaigns must further these aims.
How have you made a difference?
For over 30 years, PSC supporters have been at the forefront of the UK movement for Palestinian rights, and together we’ve had some incredible successes. Here are just a few: In October 2014, the UK Parliament voted to recognise Palestine – PSC supporters sent 57,000 emails petitioning our MPs to vote, leading to the best attended back bench vote ever. We persuaded John Lewis to stop selling Soda Stream – pickets and petitions finally forced John Lewis to stop stocking their products made in illegal Israeli settlements. With BDS partners from around the world we made Veolia sell their shares in the Jerusalem light railway and G4S promise to sell off their subsidiary G4S Israel; both companies are pulling out of Israel.
Complaints from our team of volunteers have forced apology after correction from the BBC in recognition of their biased reporting. Flagship news and current affairs programmes including Today and Newsnight have breached guidelines or been forced to issue corrections.
At the 2015 General Election over 1,000 parliamentary candidates responded to over 36,000 emails asking them for their views, making Palestine the biggest foreign policy issue at the election. In 2014 during the brutal Israeli bombing of Gaza we brought over 150,000 people to the streets to protest the bombing and stand in solidarity with the people in Gaza.
In December 2018, following a sustained campaign by PSC and other partner organisations, banking giant HSBC announced it had fully divested from Elbit Systems – Israel’s largest arms manufacturer.
We know that each of these achievements are small and alone they won’t end the occupation. But they all add up. Each victory is a step towards justice. Each victory brings us one step closer to a free Palestine.
How are you governed?
PSC is a democratic organisation managed by an elected board called the Executive Committee (EC). Each year members, branches, and affiliates elect volunteers to serve on the Executive Committee at our Annual General Meeting. These members are joined by representatives of our Student and Youth Committee and Trade Union Advisory Committee.
Members of the Executive Committee guide the work of PSC between AGMs, including through a minimum of six EC meetings throughout the year.
The AGM sets campaigning priorities for the coming year through an agreed Annual Plan, which the Executive Committee oversees the implementation of.
For more information on our democratic structures, please see our Constitution.
PSC is a democratic organisation managed by an elected board called the Executive Committee (EC). Each year members, branches, and affiliates elect volunteers to serve on the Executive Committee at our Annual General Meeting. These members are joined by representatives of our Student and Youth Committee and Trade Union Advisory Committee.
Members of the Executive Committee guide the work of PSC between AGMs, including through a minimum of six EC meetings throughout the year.
The AGM sets campaigning priorities for the coming year through an agreed Annual Plan, which the Executive Committee oversees the implementation of.
For more information on our democratic structures, please see our Constitution.
How do I find out more about what is going on in Palestine and Israel?
There is lots of information available in our factsheets and back copies of Palestine News and in the resources section of this website. For up to date information about what is happening on the ground you can also follow us on Facebook or Twitter. Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) have some brilliant resources on their website including factsheets, and this guide on how to have difficult conversations with people about Israel and Palestine.
The Visualizing Palestine website has some brilliant infographics that illustrate the wide-ranging impact of Israeli colonisation on Palestinians, including the shrinking of Palestinian land, the discriminatory Israeli ID card system, and the illegal separation Wall.
There are a number of news sites that offer excellent coverage of Palestine including Middle East Monitor, Ma’an News Agency, Electronic Intifada, and Middle East Eye
Might does not make right! Right makes right - TH White