Over 10% of members of UK Jewish umbrella group sign letter urging end to Gaza war

Thirty-six members of Britain’s main Jewish umbrella group sign a public letter criticizing Israel’s continuation of the war against Hamas in Gaza, accusing Jerusalem of implementing harmful policies to appease the government’s far-right flank.

The members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, which includes a total of over 300 members, write that “our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out.”

In a letter published in the Financial Times, they argue that “the last 18 months of heartbreaking war have shown us that the most successful way of bringing the hostages home and creating a lasting peace is through diplomacy.”

They claim the ceasefire deal signed in January had sufficient international guarantees to ensure Israel’s future security, and brand the war’s renewal last month as “the ‘Itamar offensive,’ so-called as it was Itamar Ben Gvir’s condition for returning to the coalition, thus enabling the Israeli government’s budget to be passed within the tight deadline needed to avoid an election.”

The letter blames Israel for the killing of hundreds of Palestinians since then, including 15 killed while in an ambulance convoy, in an incident in which the IDF has acknowledged acting in error.

“This most extremist of Israeli governments is openly encouraging violence against Palestinians in the West Bank, strangling the Palestinian economy and building more new settlements than ever,” they go on, also condemning a renewed judicial overhaul legislative push.

“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,” the signatories say, adding that they stand with the hundreds of thousands who campaign for the hostages and an end to the war in weekly demonstrations in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

“We stand against the war. We acknowledge and mourn the loss of Palestinian life. We yearn for the “day after” this conflict when reconciliation can start. As we mark the festival of freedom with so many hostages still in captivity, it is our duty, as Jews, to speak out.”

In a statement responding to the letter, the Board of Deputies notes that it “represents the diverse constituencies of the UK Jewish community” and acknowledges “that around 10% of our Deputies signed this letter and that potentially others would associate themselves with it.”

It adds: “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 7 October.”

“This diversity 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,” the statement notes.

“Within this diversity, however, there is much unity. The UK Jewish community as a whole wants to see the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas. We want to see Hamas, Hezbollah and the other terrorist proxies of Iran prevented from ever being able to repeat 7 October. We want to see aid flowing into Gaza so that its civilian population can rebuild their lives. And we want to see definitive progress towards lasting peace and security for Israelis, Palestinians, and the wider Middle East.”