27/11/2023
Gay human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell says that he broadly supported the demonstrations against the collective punishment of Palestinians for the activities of the Hamas regime in the Gaza strip. In a post to his facebook feed, Mr Tatchell, who has often been criticised by other leftists for his stance against fundamentalist Palestinian groups, outlined his solution for the region, saying: "Ceasefire now, humanitarian aid & prisoner exchange. Stop attacks on civilians & collective punishment of Gaza. These are war crimes. Peace with justice! End the occupation & apartheid system. Dismantle illegal settlements on West Bank. Halt seizure of Palestinian homes & land. A Palestinian state! Democracy, secularism, equality & human rights for Jewish & Arab peoples.". But Mr Tatchell also took pains to criticise those left wingers whose support for Palestine played down the crimes of the Hamas regime in Gaza. Tatchell noted "Hamas is a sexist, homophobic, theocratic tyrant regime. As well as massacring Israeli civilians, it oppresses Palestinians with censorship, torture, detention without trial, extrajudicial killings and no free speech or press, and no right to protest or strike."
