Glasgow Friends of Israel member Edward Sutherland reports on what happened at an SPSC "rally"

ROM HATRED TO SHALOM...

First the Hatred...

Glasgow Friends of Israel member Edward Sutherland reports on what happened at an SPSC "rally"

"From the start, there was an atmosphere of hatred and, on arrival, I was called a ‘fascist’ by a man handing out placards. There was a coordinated attempt by organisers to block the views of 'Zionists' by holding flags or placards in front of our faces and I was repeatedly shoved and sworn at. Particularly aggressive and threatening violence was one man holding one of the large SPSC banners at the front of the demo. Later, as a friend and I were speaking with two of the crowd, I saw the same individual leave in a group of about six men, one of whom glared in our direction and shouted to the others, “Right, let’s get down there!” They then headed down the street towards the stall. Most of the audience seemed swept along by the rabble-rousers on the platform and who saw the demo as giving legitimacy to expressions of anger and hatred."

GFI member Nigel Goodrich continues... On Saturday January 6 members of the public were shocked when a man shouted “Hitler should have gassed the lot of you” at the Glasgow Friends of Israel peace stall. The man had attended a rally minutes earlier organised by the vile Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign. A two-year investigation into their activities by Jewish Human Rights Watch revealed that up to 40% of their supporters who post on the SPSC Facebook page regularly post anti-Semitic and/or Holocaust-denying comments. The secretary of the SPSC, twice-convicted criminal Mick Napier, has refused to call out these haters and thus is complicit in accommodating, nurturing and encouraging behaviour which is injurious to community cohesion and puts the Jewish community at risk. As respected journalist Alex Massie wrote in the Sunday Times, “no decent person should associate themselves with the SPSC”. This latest criminal episode eloquently confirms Alex’s assessment.

More hatred on the SPSC Facebook Page...

SPSC adding incitement only three minutes after this hate-post appeared.

On Thursday January 4th the following was posted on the Facebook page of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign:    “I’m sick of this shit and all the useless fucken talking..just shoot these Zionist dogs now, organize weapons to be sent to the Palestinian people so they can fight back…” Instead of removing the post without comment, or distancing themselves from the clear call to murder Jews, the SPSC quickly posted the flagrant reply:    “Are you sick enough of the crimes to do something about it?” This is a clear and unambiguous incitement to violence. We consider this to be a serious hate crime and have reported it to the police and other bodies. The SPSC continues to attract, encourage and nurture vile racists whose behaviour, like that of its secretary Mick Napier, is criminal. COFIS will continue to report all such examples of Ant-Semitic hate-crimes to the police and expose the SPSC for what it is: a nasty, delinquent caucus wanting the liquidation of the democratic Jewish state.

From Hatred to Shalom...

Diminishing returns: SPSC protesters reduced from 150+ in 2016 to a mere 23 (maximum) in 2017, and on only one of the three days of the second International Shalom Festival

COFIS believes that the hatred and anti-dialogue perpetrated by disreputable groups such as the SPSC make no contribution towards peace and should be exposed for what they truly are. By contrast COFIS believes in dialogue between those who are sincere about planning a shared future and living together peacefully. We call this 'coexistence'. We have put on four peace festivals which promoted this vision, the most recent being the highly successful second International Shalom Festival at the Edinburgh Fringe. One of our strongest supporters is the founder of 'Pro Israel, Pro Palestinian Pro Peace', Judy Weleminsky, who is also a major sponsor. Judy commissioned a series of films which tells  the story of how the International Shalom Festival has countered the hatred of the SPSC. You can see the full 23 minute version here. Our sincere thanks to Judy, and the two filmmakers Deb and Christy, a Palestinian.

What can I do to support truth, justice and peace in the Middle East?

You may be astonished to learn that the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, a group that is supported by the Islamic Republic of Iran, is not banned in the UK

COFIS supports the excellent work of the Israel Britain Alliance. IBA Director and Scot Michael McCann, a former MP, writes    Despite being responsible for terror attacks across the globe and in particular seeking to kill Jewish people as a number one priority, the UK Government allows Hezbollah to be promoted freely in our country.   The Hezbollah flag has the first letter of Allah reaching up to grasp an assault rifle.   People are walking down our streets with this flag celebrating terrorism and mocking our democracy.   A group of 15 brave cross-party MPs led by Joan Ryan have secured a debate in the House of Commons Chamber to call on the Government to ban Hezbollah. The debate will take place on 25 January. We would humbly request that you send an email to your MP asking them to attend the debate and call on the Government to ban this terror group.

Click to send a letter to your MP