People Before Profit says Sinn Féin and Greens are supporting their call for emergency meeting
A proposal has been made for a special Belfast Council meeting to gather support for Palestine solidarity activists on hunger strike in England.
People Before Profit Councillor Michael Collins has made a call for a special meeting at City Hall, which requires seven of the chamber’s 60 councillor’s signatures to be realised.
The meeting will have to be called within a maximum of two weeks after getting the necessary signatures, so the full council gathering could hear a debate on the matter in the New Year or before.
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PBP have said Sinn Féin and the Green Party are supporting the call, which would almost certainly mean the debate will be heard at City Hall.
Seven remand prisoners waiting to go on trial for alleged offences relating to Palestine Action have adopted a hunger strike protest in England. As of December 18, two have ended the protest, but five continue to refuse food.
Two detainees have been reportedly refusing food for 47 days. One of these, female protestor Qesser Zuhrah, has been described as being “critically ill” with an “immediate” risk of dying.
The protests have taken place in five different prisons. All were charged with offences relating to alleged break-ins or criminal damage on behalf of Palestine Action, before the group was banned under terrorism legislation. All charges are denied by all the prisoners. Four are accused of involvement in the break-in to an Israeli-linked defence firm in 2024.
Belfast People Before Profit Councillor Michael Collins stated: “As the situation is reaching a critical stage for Palestine activists on hunger strike, we are proposing an emergency meeting of Belfast City Council is convened.
“The intention of this is for the council to take a decision to apply pressure on the British government to intervene and accede to the demands of the hunger strikers. Dropping the charges against these activists would ensure no lives are lost. The British government has the power to do this in an instant.”
He added: “The proscription of Palestine Action itself is a cynical political move by the British Government to try to criminalise and silence the Palestine solidarity movement. It will not work.
“Resisting war crimes is not a crime. The only thing these activists are guilty of is taking action to prevent genocide. They should be immediately released and all charges against them dropped.”
The Palestinian flag flew on Belfast City Hall earlier this month after a legal delay and “call-in” by Unionist politicians. On a tight vote during a special meeting of the full council on December 1, the chamber voted to fly the flag from midnight for 24 hours, after a particularly bitter debate.
A Sinn Féin proposal to erect the Palestinian flag on City Hall saw 32 votes in support, from Sinn Féin, the SDLP, the Greens and People Before Profit, to 28 votes against from the DUP, Alliance, the UUP and the TUV. The council vote was unusual in that all 60 members turned up to cast their vote.
In November, a majority of elected representatives, including the Alliance Party, approved a Sinn Féin proposal to erect the national flag of Palestine above City Hall on Saturday November 29, the International Day for Solidarity with the People of Palestine.
This decision was subsequently called in by 12 unionists from the chamber, from 10 DUP councillors, one UUP councillor and one TUV councillor. Despite arguments over the voting process as part of the call-in, the council narrowly voted to fly the Palestinian flag.
An emergency legal bid by the TUV to have the Palestinian flag taken down from City Hall on December 2 was rejected by a High Court judge.
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