Jerusalem – Together – Dozens of representatives of the Arab community in Britain discussed how to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people and move forward in addressing the British government in order to change its position towards what is happening in Gaza. They also discussed how to organize the ranks of the community and hold a comprehensive, inclusive and expanded conference that brings together broader segments of British Arabs. , especially young people and children of the second generation born on British soil.
These deliberations took place during a special Ramadan evening held on Saturday evening and organized by the ‘Arab Community Conference’ in Britain, along with the Arab Thinking Forum and the ‘Arabs of London’ platform. They were also attended by the Palestinian Ambassador to Britain, Hossam Zomlot, who delivered a speech to the audience in which he stressed the importance of uniting the Arab community in Britain, making it more influential and more vocal.
Zomlot said, ‘The fragmenta
tion of the common Arab identity was part of the Zionist project, and they succeeded, unfortunately, in some places and at times,’ noting that ‘Palestine has always been at the heart of Arab action, and therefore this identity is the trench that defends our Palestinian people.’
Zomlot pointed out the important role of the Arab community in explaining the Palestinian narrative and promoting it to public opinion, and said, ‘This number of voices and speakers capable of explaining the Palestinian narrative is unprecedented, and this solidarity and support for the Palestinian people in Britain is also unprecedented, and one day there were a million people.’ In the streets of London for Palestine and for Gaza, this is history being recorded, and I think we should be proud of this history being recorded.’
Representatives of the Palestinian Community Association in Britain participated in the deliberations of the ‘Arab Community Conference,’ along with the former president of the Palestine Solidarity Movement, Pro
fessor Kamel Hawash, the president of the Arab Lawyers Association in Britain, Sabah Al-Mukhtar, the president of the Cordoba Foundation for Dialogue among Civilizations, Anas Al-Takriti, and the president of the Academy of Culture. And Arab arts in London, Zainab Al-Jawari, in addition to Al Jazeera journalist Majed Abdel Hadi and a large number of academics, journalists, writers and analysts from the Arab community in Britain.
The attendees discussed a number of ideas and aspirations related to the community, including the recent correspondence between the Arab Community Conference and the office of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak regarding the situation in Gaza, and the call to change the British position on what is happening in the Palestinian territories, including the need to stop… Ceasefire and stop arms exports to the Israeli occupation state. The Arab Thinking Forum also unveiled the book ‘British Arabs: Challenges and Aspirations,’ which was distributed to members of the conference, in prepara
tion for distributing it to public libraries and sending it to a number of senior figures in Britain and the Arab world. The book includes what has been accomplished so far in terms of efforts to unify… And organizing the Arab community in Britain.
The head of the Arab Thinking Forum and the editor-in-chief of the ‘Arabs of London’ platform, Muhammad Amin, said during the opening speech, ‘Israel, after six months of war on Gaza, has lost the battle of public opinion, which makes our presence as an Arab community in this country very influential.’ He pointed out that “these six months were the most difficult for the Arab community following what is happening in the Palestinian territories, but the good thing is that Israel failed to annihilate the Palestinian people, because it has simply failed to do so since 1948.”
It is noteworthy that the ‘Arab Community Conference’ was established in the summer of 2023 at the initiative of the Arab Thinking Forum and the ‘Arabs of London’ platform, which is considered
the largest and most famous Arab website concerned with the Arab community in Britain and which was established in the year 2018, while the ‘Arab Thinking Forum’ organizes a number of conferences. Periodic events include the ‘Palestinian Heritage Festival,’ which is held annually in London and is considered the most prominent event for the Palestinian community in the United Kingdom. It also brings together most of the Arab communities under its roof.
Source: Maan News Agency