Day five and again dozens of Youth Demand supporters have taken to the streets, demanding that the UK government impose a total trade embargo on Israel, and make the super rich and fossil fuel elite pay damages to communities and countries most harmed by fossil fuel burning. [1]
At around 9am, supporters of Youth Demand blocked traffic on Moorgate. They stepped into the carriageway and unfurled banners reading ‘Free Palestine’, ‘Stop Arming Israel’ and ‘Make the Rich Pay’, and let off smoke flares. After around 20 minutes they left the area and re-emerged at Farringdon Road where they blocked traffic again, while a shower of eggs rained down on them from angry passers by and a truck attempted to drive through the assembled supporters standing in the road. They left the road and moved off towards Fenchurch Street. The team occupied the road for around 20 minutes at each site and despite a heavy police presence at the time of writing there were no arrests.
On the road today was Mia Hinds, 18, an A Level student from Exeter who said:
“I am taking action with Youth Demand because I cannot sit by and watch two genocides happen on livestream: the genocide of the Palestinians, and the global genocide of the climate crisis. As a young person I feel so much rage about government complicity, and I feel a duty to take to the streets. Join us this Saturday at Russell Square at 11am to hold politicians to account.”
Ian Rothauser, 20, a drama student from Connecticut, USA said:
“No one is alone. Fighting for Palestinian liberation is the same as fighting for our own. We cannot continue to live in ignorance and complacency. There is no more normal, we shall not act normally. It is integral right now that artists loudly fight for liberation. Making art that ignores the injustice of our world is hollow and untruthful. That to me is death.”
Yesterday, a Niqab-wearing Youth Demand supporter was violently assaulted by a passer-by as she took part in a swarming action outside Holborn Station. She was knocked out and suffered two seizures while standing in the road at a pedestrian crossing. [2]
As Youth Demand took action on the streets yesterday, a group of 12 activists from Greenpeace UK took action and poured (harmless) blood red dye into the US Embassy pond in London because the US and the UK government have blood on their hands as they are allowing the selling weapons to Israel despite the Israeli PM being wanted for war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. The action resulted in six arrests including Will McCallum, Co-Executive Director of Greenpeace UK.[3]
Today’s actions come against a backdrop of ongoing killing and forcible displacement of Palestinians in Gaza, coupled with the routine denial of access for aid and of medical evacuations. This morning Al Jazeera reports that a further 30 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza since dawn on Thursday, and there are reports of new attacks and casualties.[4]
Israel’s defence minister has said it will expand its so-called “security zones” in Gaza to include the southern city of Rafah. According to the UN two-thirds of Gaza has been designated as “no-go” zones or placed under evacuation orders since Israel resumed its offensive against Hamas on 18 March following the collapse of a two-month ceasefire. This has left 390,000 Palestinians —, almost a fifth of the 2.1 million population — with no safe place to go.[5]
World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has warned of more disease and deaths due to Israel’s blockade of aid entering Gaza where more than 10,000 people need medical evacuation abroad and at least 60,000 children are malnourished. He said 75% of UN missions in Gaza last week were denied or impeded.[6]
Israel has persistently denied that its political leaders or military have committed war crimes during its assault on Gaza, in which it has killed more than 50,000 people, most of them civilians. The UK continues to support genocide by supplying arms, whilst conducting more surveillance flights on behalf of Israel over Gaza than any other country. [7]
Young people will not accept these crimes against humanity and we will not be led by war criminals and arsonists. We cannot allow those in power to get away with facilitating the systematic annihilation of an entire culture. It’s time to take to the streets day after day and to demand better. Only sustained mass resistance can put an end to this genocide. Shut London down with us this Saturday by joining us at Russell Square at 11am.
ENDS
Youth Demand Press contact: 07762 987334
Press email: YouthDemandPress@protonmail.com
High quality images & video here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13vFus2e8TEI_bfhIYHXEIV-IZV86P9v9
Website: https://youthdemand.org
Twitter: https://x.com/youth_demand
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_youthdemand
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@youth.demand
Notes to Editors
[1] Youth Demand is a youth-led resistance campaign fighting for an end to genocide in Palestine and across the globe as a result of the climate crisis.
Our demands:
Stop all trade with Israel:the UK government must impose a total trade embargo on Israel.
Make the rich pay: the UK government must raise £1tn by 2030 from the super rich and fossil fuel elite to pay damages to communities and countries most harmed by fossil fuel burning.
Youth Demand is part of Umbrella and a member of the A22 Network of civil resistance projects.
