A trade union official was seen applauding calls to reject the “existence” of the state of Israel.
Shelly Asquith, who serves as the Trades Union Congress (TUC)’s health, safety and wellbeing officer was at the time chairing a meeting of Stop the War coalition, one of the groups that has helped organise anti-Israel demonstrations in London.
Palestinian activist Dr Ghada Karmi told the meeting, which took place in mid-October, that even in the unlikely event of a resolution to the current conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, she thought it best that “any solution that maintains the existence of the state of Israel is rejected”.
The remarks were greeted with applause from the panel, according to a video recording, and the audience.
At the (checks notes) Stop the War Coalition meeting “any solution that maintains the existence of the state of Israel is rejected” but there is good news because although the “population of Israel have shown themselves to be also genocidal” they’re allowed to stay. pic.twitter.com/zQG73d8CMF
— Marc Goldberg (@MarcGoldberg111) October 18, 2024
Karmi went on to say that even though the “population of Israel have shown themselves to be also genocidal”, they would be allowed to “live in equality and in a democratic structure which guarantees everybody’s rights”.
Earlier in her speech, she said regarding Hamas’s atrocities on October 7 that “whether Hamas fighters intended it or not led to the most amazing upheaval in the world” and added “what is the most important lesson of October 7 is that the state of Israel must be dismantled”.
Stop the War’s event also featured contributions from speakers including Paul Holmes, the president of Unison, Britain’s largest trade union and Leanne Mohammad, who stood as an independent candidate at July’s general election and came within touching distance of defeating Labour’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting in his Ilford North seat.
During her opening remarks at Stop the War’s event, Asquith, who serves as co-chair of the organisation, labelled Israel a “settler colonial state” that she claimed was committing “genocide” against the Palestinian people.
She told the crowd: “What we’ve witnessed now for a year is the utter depravity and barbarity of an imperialist power-backed settler colonial state. The genocide of the Palestinian people killed in their homes, killed fleeing to safety killed as they shelter, killed in their heroic acts of resistance, killed with the help of the British government.”
Asquith boasted that Stop the War had “in these last 12 months … sustained one of the largest pro-Palestine movements in the world, with hundreds of thousands turning out almost weekly to pile pressure on those in power, to call for a ceasefire, for an end to arms to Israel and to defend the Palestinians’ right to exist and resist”.
A spokesperson for the TUC appeared to distance it from its employee, telling the JC: “The TUC has set out our views clearly on Israel and Palestine, including at our Congress this year. The TUC unequivocally condemns the attacks by Hamas on October 7 last year and we call for the release of all hostages unharmed.”
The spokesperson continued: “Thousands of Palestinians – mainly women and children – have been killed and many more are injured. We call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, an end to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and respect for international law.”
In contrast to calls for Israel not to exist, they said: “We will continue to support and work for a two-state solution based on a safe and secure Israel and a safe and secure Palestine.”