In an open letter, 36 members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews said they “cannot turn a blind eye or remain silent” at the “renewed loss of life and livelihoods” as a result of Israel’s renewed offensive in Gaza
Dozens of members of the largest body representing Jews in the UK have condemned Israel’s government for the “heartbreaking war” in Gaza.
In an open letter published in the Financial Times, 36 members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews said they “cannot turn a blind eye or remain silent” at the “renewed loss of life and livelihoods” as a result of Israel’s renewed offensive in Gaza.
The letter is the first show of opposition to the Gaza war by some members of the board – made up of more than 300 deputies. Responding to the letter, the board said it understood about 10% of its members were signatories “and potentially others would associate themselves” with its message.
The board added in a statement: “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 October 7.”
It said the diversity of opinion within the board “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”.
Signatories of the open letter criticising Israel’s offensive in Gaza warned “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”.
It took aim at the Israeli government, which it said had chosen to “break the ceasefire and return to war in Gaza”, rather than engage in diplomacy and agree the next phase of a ceasefire deal.
Israel blocked the entry of food, medicine and other supplies on 2 March and two weeks later resumed the war. It said it did this because Hamas did not accept a proposal to extend the ceasefire’s first phase and release more of the 59 hostages it is still holding, up to 24 of whom are believed to be alive.
Hamas accused Israel of violating the original deal, according to which there would be a second phase where all the remaining living hostages would be handed over and the war brought to a permanent end.
Since then Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,650 people, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says, including 36 strikes that killed only women and children according to the UN human rights office. On Wednesday Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) became the latest international organisation to sound alarm at the impact of Israel’s campaign, saying that Gaza had been “turned into a mass grave of Palestinians and those coming to their assistance”.
“We are witnessing in real time the destruction and forced displacement of the entire population in Gaza,” Amande Bazerolle, the charity’s emergency co-ordinator in Gaza, said. Israel says it aims to pressure Hamas to release hostages and has vowed to maintain the blockade. It claims there is no shortage of aid because 25,000 lorry loads of supplies entered during the ceasefire, despite the UN warning of “devastating” consequences.
The letter from members of the Board of Deputies said: “Led by the families of the hostages, hundreds of thousands of Israelis are demonstrating on the streets against the return to war by an Israeli government that has not prioritised the return of the hostages. We stand with them. We stand against the war… It is our duty, as Jews, to speak out.”
Among the signatories was vice-chair of the international division of the Board of Deputies, Harriet Goldenberg. She told the Financial Times she and other signatories had decided to publicly voice their concern after the Board of Deputies denied a request to release a statement condemning the resumption of hostilities in Gaza. Another signatory of the letter, lawyer Philip Goldenberg, told BBC Radio 4’s World at One programme there is a “whole range of views” among British Jews, “and there are those who think we should not have done this”.
Goldenberg added that there will be others “who share our views, but don’t, for their own personal reasons – perfectly fairly – want to put their head above the parapet”. Israel launched a campaign to destroy Hamas in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 51,025 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
