A vigil held outside UK’s Downing Street for ‘all those suffering’
Family members whose loved ones have been killed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict gathered outside Downing Street on Sunday to hold a vigil "for all those suffering" because of the recent outbreak of fighting. Faith leaders, bereaved families and politicians of all parties all made speeches in the first mass event of its kind since the conflict began.
The organisers said the event called Building Bridges, together for Humanity, aimed to bring together people who wanted to "speak out against both antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate".
“We have seen the misery and anguish the death of loved ones brings in the ordinary days of peacetime. This is all the more terrible amid the uncertainty, fear and terror of war. We are deeply distressed by the horror being suffered, even as we write, by so many civilians in both Israel and Palestine.
At moments like this it is easy for that pain to spill over into anger and for that anger to blind us to the plight of others. We too feel deep ties of loyalty to our respective faiths and communities. But we also feel the bond of universal humanity that unites us. We share the belief that every person is of infinite value and that every life is an entire, unique and irreplaceable world. Therefore, we are resolved to pray and work together for a future that brings dignity, security, enduring peace and hope to everyone .
Despite, perhaps even within, the very trauma of the current situation, we seek to find opportunity. We see in this moment a key time to recognise each other’s anguish, express our solidarity in the face of suffering, and work alongside one another for a more compassionate world.”....from Imam Monawar Hussain, the Muslim tutor at Eton College, Windsor and Jonathan Wittenberg, rabbi of New North London Synagogue.
The vigil spoke out against both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia and is the first multi faith, mass event of its kind since the conflict began.
Magen Inon, whose parents were both killed by Hamas in the Oct 7 attacks, said: “It is unbelievable that while mourning the murder of both my parents, I have to witness extremists use our grief and tragedy to promote their hatred.
“This wouldn’t have been my parents’ wish. They had friends and colleagues from diverse backgrounds and always treated people with respect.”
He added that they would have wanted their grandchildren to grow up in a world based on values of “humanity and solidarity”.
Hamze Awawde, a Palestinian peace activist who lives in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, said that the war had unleashed unimaginable “pain and suffering”.
“In the West Bank where my immediate family lives, we are deeply traumatised by the current and ongoing situation,” he said, adding that only last week his cousin had been shot in the leg in the town of Dura.
“But if anyone thinks stoking anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim hatred is the best response, you are wrong. We can only solve this conflict in the long term if we stop dehumanising each other.
“Please don’t make this conflict even worse by importing its tensions into your country – instead people should channel their energies into lobbying the Government to support peace and reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians.”
Robi Damilen, whose son David was killed by a Palestinian sniper in 2002, will spoke on behalf of The Parents Circle-Families Forum (PCFF), a grassroots organisation made up of over 600 Palestinian and Israeli families working together.
Brendan Cox, co-founder of the Together coalition that helped to organise the event, said; “This was the first mass event of its kind since the start of the conflict in Gaza and Israel. Our focus is on building bridges between communities, standing against anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim hate and protecting community relations ......”
Julie Siddiqi, Muslim interfaith activist and one of the organisers, said: “People are sick of being told you are either with us or against us. It’s possible, in fact it’s normal, to feel sympathy with civilians no matter which side of the border. This vigil gave us the chance to share in our common humanity.”
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
