• Climate Resistance protestor removed for calling out UK arms sales to Israelis, while Israeli suppliers sponsored and hosted Labour events
• Protest events were also prohibited from using ‘apartheid’ and ‘genocide’ in their literature despite Liverpool’s 15,000 strong show of Palestine support
An activist was violently removed by event security and Met police in protest of the country’s continued support for arms sales to Israelis.
Despite a change in government following July’s general election, the young activist lamented how he felt nothing had changed.
His removal came during Israeli-funded UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ keynote speech at the Labour conference in Liverpool.
Shockingly within the live broadcast, security can be seen repeatedly placing their hands around the protestor’s neck eventually putting him in a chokehold and then dragging him away by his arms to remove him from the conference floor.
Before the protestor was tackled and dragged away, he could be heard shouting to the Zionist MP:
“We are still selling arms to Israel! I thought we voted for change, Rachel!”
Along with the young man were other activists from the same campaign group he represented – Climate Resistance – who infiltrated the Labour conference audience. They unfurled a banner reading:
“Still backing polluters, still arming Israel – we voted for change.”
Campaigners from Climate Resistance had previously argued that donations from polluting industries and Israel lobbyists to the Labour Party are to blame for the government’s inaction.
Deplorable Behaviour
As the activist was removed from the arena floor, people he was dragged past could be seen applauding his removal with one man waving at him.
Several men then took over to aggressively apprehend and remove him from the Labour conference. It is unclear whether they were plainclothes police or event security.
The protestors were then filmed in handcuffs by another member of the public as they were taken away to a nearby police van by plainclothes officers. It is unclear what charges have been brought against the activists, as has been the case for many ethical people finding themselves falling prey to Keir Starmer’s police.
Following the arrest Jeremy Corbyn sent out a message on social media saying:
“The brave protestor at Labour conference demanding an end to all arms sales to Israel reminds me of the party member who was dragged out of conference in 2005 for protesting the war in Iraq. Who was on the right side of history?”
Corbyn had been referring to 82-year-old Walter Wolfgang, a Labour delegate who was manhandled out of the Brighton conference in 2005 for calling out “nonsense” to then-foreign secretary Jack Straw during a speech about Britain’s success in bringing democracy to Iraq.
Mr Wolfgang was refused permission under Section 44 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act, though he later received an apology from the Labour Party – albeit a forced one.
Released but Scars Remain
The young men, though having been arrested, were subsequently de-arrested after being taken away some distance from the Labour conference.
In an interview which took place hours later after the event, the protestor who chose to withhold his name revealed the scarring around his neck from the vicious assault that took place when removing him.
It was also revealed that while he was being held down, one of the men apprehending him whispered “weasel” in his ear, however, it is unclear whether it was the police or event security who made that remark at him following his attempts to shout “Free Palestine” as he was dragged out from the arena.
“The Labour Party wants to brand themselves as the party of change, and I think it’s really important to propose a counter-narrative to that, because there’s so many things, really important things that they’renot changing on, you know they’re still selling arms to Israel during the genocide.
“Genocide is being committed on the Palestinian people and we are part of the international justification for that.
“David Lammy has decided to suspend ten per cent of arms sales to Israel. As far as I can see it is a token action and if they’re serious about this, which they should be as the ICC has just warranted the arrest of Benjamin Netanyahu, the ICJ has said that there is a plausible case for genocide in Palestine, then they should be removing all those licenses and if they’re prepared to remove ten per cent then they should do the rest of them.”
Climate Resistance Responds
Sam Simons, spokesperson for Climate Resistance confirmed that the protest that took place in the arena was planned by them, and said after the Labour conference incident:
“Labour promised us change – instead, we’re getting more of the same. The same pandering to the fossil fuel industry; the same arms licences that are fuelling a genocide in Gaza, and the same austerity that sees the poorest hit hardest.
“It’s time for Labour to start putting the needs of people before the interests of profit. That means immediately stopping arms licences to Israel, blocking new oil and gas, and standing up for the communities already being devastated by the climate crisis.”
According to a recent investigation, half of the Labour cabinet has accepted funding from pro-Israel lobbyists.
In February, Rachel Reeves herself scrapped Labour’s proposed £28 billion green investment fund, shortly after accepting a £10,000 donation from Lord Donoghue, a prominent climate sceptic and former chairperson of the climate-denying Global Warming Policy Foundation.
“Half of the Labour cabinet took cash from Israel lobbyists and Rachel Reeves herself didn’t shy away from taking money from a known climate denier. How can we trust this government to take the urgent action we need to prevent both escalating genocide and climate breakdown when they’re so clearly in the pockets of fossil fuel and arms companies?”
The party has also refused to revoke oil and gas licences handed out by the Tories, including for the controversial Rosebank oil field, commit to phasing out subsidies for Drax, the UK’s single largest carbon emitter. Drax has donated to the party and is a major sponsor at the Labour conference.
Genocide Investors Sponsor Labour Events
The economy and people’s lives in the UK have played second fiddle in the conference where Barclays and the M&S Arena in Liverpool played hosts to the predominantly Israeli-funded Zionist-led Labour Party.
Starmer and his cabinet are desperate to make this Labour conferencerun seamlessly without issue, but within the first 24 hours, and most unexpectedly for them, they saw their first disruptors, and unsurprisingly it was all about the Israelis.
In July, artist Darren Cullen introduced an ad campaign against Barclays highlighting the £6 billion-plus in loans and underwriting Barclays has given to companies supplying Israelis with weapons and military technology since 2019 including Elbit Systems.
Incidentally, one of those Barclays investments also held an event at the Labour conference on Monday.
“A new era of defence: How can Labour address current and future challenges?”, was hosted by the New Statesman magazine and sponsored by Northrop Grumman, a company that supplies the Israeli military with weapons and missile systems reportedly used on Palestinian civilians. Its Chief Executive, Nick Chaffey was also in attendance.
According to the charity Action On Armed Violence (AOAV), Northrop Grumman has supplied significant components for F-35 fighter jetsproduced primarily by Lockheed Martin, which have been central to Israel’s military operations.
The American firm’s technologies, whose offices are based in New Malden, South London, are integrated into the Israeli’s main weapon systems, including its fighter jets and missile ships. The F-35s are one of the many weapons extensively used by Israelis in strikes across Gaza.
Liverpool Responds
Prior to the commencement of the conference on Sunday, one of the biggest demonstrations seen in Liverpool in years saw a 15,000-strong crowd bring together activists from across the country with a strong local turnout and wound its way through the city centre to a rally at the Pier Head.
The protesters stood outside the entrance to the conference at Liverpool’s ACC Arena. Black vans were parked nearby emblazoned with posters reading “Suspend all arms sales to Israel”.
The Labour government suspended 30 out of 350 arms export licences to Israelis in early September, with many saying that the UK’s suspension of less than 10 per cent of arms licences had not gone far enough, with a recent poll showing that three-quarters of Labour members back a full arms ban.
Speaking at the demonstration, suspended Liverpool Labour MP Ian Byrne said that “serious violations of international law” are being conducted by Israel.
“The siege of Gaza is a war crime,” he said, adding that “corporations which send arms to Israel are complicit in these crimes.”
Mick Whelan, general secretary of train drivers’ union Aslef, told the rally:
“We don’t want 30 arms licences for Israel cancelled, we want them all cancelled. “War crimes are being committed every single day.”
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament general secretary Kate Hudson accused Israelis of “terrorist attacks” in Lebanon, using technology to “kill and wound thousands, including children.
“When is this government going to act?” she asked, demanding an end to arms production “and the deadly shipments that kill our brothers and sisters in Gaza.”
Stop the War Coalition convener Lindsey German pointed out that “Keir Starmer has not condemned what is going on in Lebanon. That is disgraceful.”
She added that Foreign Secretary David Lammy “says nobody should escalate, or strike back at Israel. Yet Israel is allowed to bomb, week after week, month after month.”
Labour MP Kim Johnson also addressed the crowd but was heckled by some protesters who urged her to “get out of the Labour Party”.
As night approached on Sunday evening, a clear message was being sent to Starmer and his cabinet.
Several organisations including Oxfam, Christian Aid, Action For Humanity and Medical Aid for Palestine collaborated to put out a huge projection on the Royal Liver Building calling for the UK Government to “suspend all arms to Israel.”
However, by the following evening Labour had already stamped its Orwellian foot down.
Calling Out Genocide and Apartheid Prohibited
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) revealed that Labour refused to allow the words “genocide” and “apartheid” to appear in the name of its fringe event, where it was used to describe the Israeli’s conduct against Palestinians in their conference brochure.
The event, where Palestinian ambassador to the UK, Husam Zomlot had been in attendance, was then renamed to be described as “Justice for Palestine”, with the phrases “end the genocide” and “end the apartheid” removed.
PSC director Ben Jamal said of the altered phrases, that it described Labour’s “failure to address the root causes of the current violence that is happening in Palestine,” but agreed the statements were clear that “it says it wants that violence to end, it says it wants a ceasefire.”
Mr Jamal then commented on the most contentious issue concerning the amended statements.
"But it fails to acknowledge that Israel is committing the crime of apartheid, a judgement made by the International Court of Justice. It is now on trial at the world's highest court, the ICJ, which has accepted the plausibility of South Africa's case that Israel is committing genocide.
"You cannot tackle an injustice unless you're prepared to name it accurately."
He added that Labour “still wants to treat Israel as a normal democratic state and therefore as a crucial ally.“
Campaigners had rightly argued that donations from polluting industries and Israel lobbyists to the Labour Party are to blame for the government’s inaction.
The Labour government has now been placed under further pressure over its stance on polluting industries and arms companies. It has refused to suspend over 90% of the UK’s sale of arms licences for the Israelis, despite the ongoing investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into “War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity” and called for arrest warrants on both Israel’s president, Netanyahu, and his defence minister, Gallant.
Despite all the public figureheads, organisations, public bodies and evidence, the human rights lawyer and Prime Minister, Keir Starmer remains adamant that the Israelis have done nothing wrong, bringing the need for a conference into question as Labour fails to address basichome policies let alone foreign policy.
For now, the conference is merely a show put on for the benefit of Labour’s Zionist and Israeli backers, confirming that the snake has shed its blue skin for red.
