Holocaust survivors condemn Starmer for linking Palestine marches to attacks

More than 40 Holocaust survivors and their descendants have sent an open letter to lame-duck PM Keir Starmer. The letter condemns him for linking attacks on Jews with pro-Palestine marches. It also demands action to put right his smear and end his promotion of the antisemitic idea that all Jews support genocidal Israel.

The letter also addresses his soon-to-be-former home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, and shameless Met Police commissioner Mark Rowley. It deplores Starmer’s weaponisation of Jewish fears and safety to attack UK freedoms – a tactic likely to increase antisemitism. It reads:

Dear Prime Minister,

We are writing to you as Jewish survivors and descendants of survivors of the Holocaust.

We have noted that you have expressed support for the banning of pro-Palestine marches and protests following the recent attacks on Jewish people and property. Your statements have given the impression that you agree with those who call these marches “hate marches” and who claim that they are a source of antisemitism and an incitement to violence against Jews.

The Home Secretary and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner have made similar statements and we are copying this letter to them.

While we condemn the attacks that have taken place against Jewish people and property, we reject the notion that these attacks result from demonstrations in support of the Palestinian people and in protest against the crimes of the Israeli government and its armed forces.

We and numerous other Holocaust survivor descendants have participated in almost every one of the national marches for Palestine. We have stood under the banner “Holocaust Survivor Descendants against Gaza Genocide” and we have individually worn placards that clearly identified us as Holocaust survivors or descendants of survivors.

Never once have we experienced the slightest hostility from the hundreds of thousands of demonstrators who have marched past us. On the contrary, just like the thousand or more Jews who march as part of the Jewish Bloc, we have been shown nothing but solidarity and even poignant displays of affection.

The only hostility we have experienced has been from the small but over-amplified pro-Israel counter-demonstrations, whose participants have clearly resented our presence. Yet their offensive and even racist language has largely been without consequence.

We therefore strongly oppose any attempt to instrumentalise the attacks on Jewish people in order to further restrict the right to protest, in particular in relation to Palestine. Not only would this be a further assault on all our freedoms, but it could also lead to resentment against Jews if it appears that this repression is happening because of a disingenuous and opportunistic exploitation of concerns for Jewish safety and prioritising this over the safety of other groups who also suffer violent attacks.

The Jewish community is not one homogeneous bloc. Many Jews, including those in our group, condemn Israel’s crimes in Gaza and elsewhere. We resent that you should even consider preventing us from expressing that condemnation, even as Jews and as Holocaust survivors and descendants of Holocaust survivors.

There is a real danger that the anger caused by Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people and others in the region leads in some cases to wholly inexcusable attacks on Jewish people in the UK. If you genuinely wish to reduce the danger of this occurring, then further restricting the right to protest against these crimes is not the answer. Instead, we urge you to publicly acknowledge that Israel is not acting on behalf of all Jews and that its crimes are condemned by many Jewish people in Britain and around the world.

Yours sincerely,

Holocaust Survivors

Doctor Agnes Kory, Child survivor of the Holocaust in Hungary

Stephen Kapos, Child survivor of the Holocaust in Hungary

Descendants of Holocaust Survivors

Mark Etkind, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Carolyn Gelenter, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Professor Emerita Miriam David, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany and Hungary

Ann Jungmann, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany

Daniel Vulliamy, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Professor Emeritus Richard Wistreich, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Rachel Richardson, Granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Professor Emeritus Robert Reiner, Son of Holocaust survivors from Hungary

Erica Levy, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Miranda Pinch, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia

Professor Yosefa Loshitzky, Daughter of survivors of the Holocaust in Poland

A M Poppy, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from the Netherlands

Colonel (Retd) Christopher Romberg, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Peter Frankental, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Charlotte Reynolds, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Sylvia Finzi, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Italy and Germany

Professor William Schabas, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Elizabeth Morley, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Hungary

Sonja Linden, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Vicky Moller, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia

Talora Leigh, Great-granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Tony Whiteson, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Karel Michael Schling, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia

Eva Turner, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia

Perdita Heller, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Professor Anne Karpf, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Poland

Helen Martins, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany

Anthony Gimpel, Son of Holocaust survivors from Germany and Austria

Oliver Rakocevic, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Mike Brecher, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Andrew Feinstein, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Amanda Sebestyen, Granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Hungary

Glenn Bassett, Grandson of Holocaust survivors from Austria

Peter Perrett, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Caroline Hearst, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany

Peter Hall, Son of Holocaust survivors from Austria

Doctor Mark Smith, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Charlotte Monro, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia

Helen Marks, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland

Angie Eden, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria

Doctor Diana Warner, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany

Lola Karpf, Granddaughter of Holocaust survivors from Poland

“Zionist without qualification” Starmer will, of course, have no interest in acting. Given today’s resignations and calls for Starmer to quit, he is unlikely to be in a position to do so. He hasn’t even had the spine yet to sack Mahmood despite her call for him to step down.

Featured image via Wikipedia