UK Black Pride urges immediate ceasefire in Gaza

It has been four months since the horrific 7 October attacks in Israel and the Gaza Strip has become a place of death and despair.

Tens of thousands of Palestinian people, mostly women and children, have been killed or injured. Families sleep in the open as

temperatures plummet. Areas where civilians were told to relocate for safety have been bombed. Medical facilities are under attack and a public health disaster is unfolding as infectious diseases spread in overcrowded shelters. 180 Palestinian women are giving birth daily amidst this chaos, and famine is starting to claim lives.

Gaza is uninhabitable for its 2 million inhabitants and the 120 Israelis still being held hostage.

Despite the horror of violence being inflicted on civilians, UK Black Pride see evidence of heroism and dignity of the Palestinian people, every single campaigner for ceasefire in Israel and those supporting our queer siblings caught in the conflict. It is clear that violence, hate, and discrimination cannot resolve differences. They only inflame pain and create new generations of suffering.

UK Black Pride calls for an immediate ceasefire as it continues to provide emotional and social support to those LGBT+ people in our community who are affected by the war in Gaza, as well as those who have been shaken by the string of assaults on the most basic precepts of humanity.

It is time for all parties to meet their obligations under international law, including to protect civilians and meet their essential needs, and to release all hostages immediately. It is also time to find a just and lasting peace for Palestinians based on the application of UN

resolutions and the 1967 borders.