British Jewish leaders condemn Netanyahu’s latest Gaza offensive

Posted: 17 April, 2025 | Category: Uncategorized

 

Theodor Herzl  was one of the architects of Zionism and author of The Jewish State which had an enormous impact on upper class British politicians, men like Arthur Balfour, who believed that Jesus would not return unless Jews were converted and living in their homeland, which Jews call Israel and Arabs call Palestine.

 

 

A letter published in the Financial Times by 36 members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, strongly criticised the actions of the Israeli Defence Forces in Gaza and  Netanyahu’s attacks on the judiciary, the media and  other democratic institutions in Israel. TREVOR GRUNDY reports –

 

Thirty six members of the 300-strong Board of Deputies of British Jews have published an open letter in the ‘Financial Times’  (April 16, 2025) declaring that they can no longer support Israel in its war in Gaza.

“Israel’s soul is being ripped out and we, members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, fear for the future of the Israel we love and have such close ties to,” the letter said. “Silence is seen as support for policies and actions that run contrary to our Jewish values.”

The letter is seen here by Muslims as well as Jews as the first significant break in the chain that links British Jews with their  religious and ethnic counterparts in Israel.

But others say that British Jews should not be commenting on what is effectively an Israeli political and military matter.

A spokesperson for the Board told the Jewish Chronicle: ” We understand that around 10% of our Deputies signed this letter and that potentially others would associate themselves  with it. Others would no doubt put more emphasis on the fundamental responsibilities of Hamas for this ghastly situation and the need to ensure that they are prevented from ever-repeating the heinous crimes of 7 October.”

One of the signatories, the inter-faith worker Philip Goldenberg, said on the BBC’s World at One radio programme on the day the letter was published  that two of the architects of Israel – Theodor Herzl and Chaim Weizmann – would turn in their graves were they to know what Netanyahu is doing not only in Gaza but in Israel itself.

He told his interviewer, Sarah Montague: “I am worried about the future of the State of Israel. I think more damage is being done to the Zionist Project by Netanyahu than Hamas could ever achieve.”

He added: “Israel was conceived by  Herzl and deigned by Weizmann as a liberal, pluralist democracy to be a light to the other nations.”

 

He said that as an inter-faith worker he often told Muslims that it would be impossible to have a meaningful dialogue with them unless they first  condemned what happened on 9/11 and then on October 7 when Hamas committed such terrible crimes  against  Jews at a music festival.

He said: “The Muslims come back and say – ‘Why haven’t British Jews condemned the present Israeli Government.’ ”

That, to his mind, was a perfectly fair question.

There are 58 hostages held in Gaza who were captured by Hamas after the 7 October (2023) attack on southern Israel, with 24 still believed to be alive.

In its report following the publication of the letter that has caught the attention of Middle East watchers around the world,   Ellie Grant of the Jewish Chronicle wrote: “In the letter, published in the Financial Times, 36 members of the Board said that as British Jews, they could no longer stay silent on the war and sharply criticised the Israeli government’s actions and expressed deep concern for Israel’s future.”

Signed by members representing a number of shuls of various denominations, the petition read:

“We write as representatives of the British Jewish community, out of love for Israel and deep concern for its future. The inclination to avert our eyes is strong, as what is happening is unbearable, but our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out.”

Reflecting on the trajectory of the war, the Board members highlighted the prior success of diplomacy over military force in securing the release of hostages.

Grant quoted the letter which said: “By the end of the first phase of the second ceasefire and hostage release deal, 135 hostages had been released through negotiation, just eight by military action, with at least three tragically killed by the IDF,” the letter continued.

“They also condemned the Israeli government’s decision to resume military operations in Gaza following a breakdown in the ceasefire agreement, adding: ‘At that moment, the Israeli government instead chose to break the ceasefire and return to war in Gaza with the ‘Itamar offensive’, so-called as it was Itamar Ben-Gvir’s condition for returning to the coalition.”

The Netanyahu government has previously rejected claims that it broke the ceasefire, arguing that it expired on March 1, weeks before the renewed offensive began. It has also denied that the military operation was motivated by a desire to bring Ben-Gvir back into the fold and shore up the administration’s support base.

Since the ceasefire collapse, the letter noted, “no hostages have returned. Hundreds and hundreds more Palestinians have been killed; food, fuel and medical supplies have once again been blocked from entering Gaza.” The statement cited the killing of paramedics and mass graves as signs of a war that is spiralling into brutality.

However, the letter did not confine its criticism to Gaza, expressing alarm over what it described as a broader erosion of democratic norms within Israel itself.

“This most extremist of Israeli governments is openly encouraging violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, strangling the Palestinian economy and building more new settlements than ever,” it said. “This extremism also targets Israeli democracy, with the independence of the judicial system again under fierce attack, the police increasingly resembling a militia and repressive laws… bitterly dividing Israeli society.”

“Silence is seen as support for policies and actions that run contrary to our Jewish values,” the letter added, aligning itself with growing Israeli protest movements demanding a prioritisation of hostage returns and a path to peace.

It went on: “We stand with them. We stand against the war. We acknowledge and mourn the loss of Palestinian life. We yearn for the ‘day after’ this conflict when reconciliation can start.

“As we mark the festival of freedom with so many hostages still in captivity, it is our duty, as Jews, to speak out.”

The publication of the campaign has been met with a divided reaction in the British community.

A spokesperson for the Board of Deputies  said in a statement after the publication of the letter –

“The Board of Deputies represents the diverse constituencies of the UK Jewish community. We understand that around 10 per cent of our Deputies signed this letter and that potentially others would associate themselves with it. Others would no doubt put more emphasis on the fundamental responsibility of Hamas for this ghastly situation and the need to ensure that they are prevented from ever repeating the heinous crimes of 7 October. This diversity is not unlike the politics of Israel itself, whose rambunctious democratic culture sees a fierce exchange of views about these excruciating life and death issues.

“Within this diversity, however, there is much unity. The UK Jewish community as a whole wants to see the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas. We want to see Hamas, Hezbollah and the other terrorist proxies of Iran prevented from ever being able to repeat 7 October. We want to see aid flowing into Gaza so that its civilian population can rebuild their lives. And we want to see definitive progress towards lasting peace and security for Israelis, Palestinians, and the wider Middle East.”