Jeremy Corbyn: Israel can’t stop me fighting for a Free Palestine

Yesterday, the Israeli government’s decided to ban me – and 11 other British MPs – from entering their country. This offers a tiny glimpse into the kind of authoritarianism that Palestinians are subject to every single day. 

Over my lifetime, it’s been my privilege to visit Palestine on several different occasions. On these trips, I’ve witnessed what Palestinians endure – endless checkpoints, manned watchtowers, arbitrary arrests, expulsion from, and destruction of, their homes. 

The Israeli occupation dictates who can and cannot move freely, and denies any vestige of autonomy to the Palestinians. 

In Gaza, the Israeli occupation controls most of what goes in and out, most recently in illegal blocking of aid which has resulted in the mass starvation and displacement of Palestinians. 

As more and more people have woken up to what an independent UN commission recognises is a genocide in Gaza, Israel has also denied entry to UN investigators and international journalists – a transparent attempt to stop the world from finding out the full extent of the war crimes it has committed. 

On top of that, there are thousands of Palestinian refugees who are still denied the right to return. 

I do not lose sleep over the Israeli government’s disapproval of me.

However I do object, in the strongest possible terms, to Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, UN investigators and journalists. I object to Israel’s routine degradation of Palestinians who are denied their freedom of movement. 

And I object to Israel’s attempt to shield itself from accountability for the crime of apartheid, occupation and genocide.

That is the real scandal. 

Israel’s decision to ban us, it seems, was made in response to the UK government’s welcome decision to impose sanctions on their illegal settlement goods. 

This decision is long overdue – and hysteria from those who oppose it proves just how much impunity Israel has enjoyed so far. International law is clear: Israel’s presence in the Palestinian territories is unlawful, as ruled by the ICJ in July 2024, which imposed obligations on the UK not to aid or assist the illegal obligation. 

Ultimately, this decision is a first step toward the government finally fulfilling its legal obligations. These obligations, however, should not be limited to a sanction on goods. 

Any meaningful package of sanctions would recognise how ‘settlement goods’ are subsumed into Israel’s wider economy. That means ending all trade, all military co-operation, and all forms of support that sustain Israel’s unlawful presence as a whole. 

I also re-iterate my demand for this government to recognise genocide in Gaza, end all arms sales – including F-35 components – to Israel, and heed my repeated calls for a public inquiry into British complicity.

What this ban is really about is preventing British MPs from visiting the occupied West Bank or Gaza, and witnessing the site of increasingly horrifying state-backed settler violence, which has grown since October 2023.

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The Israeli government’s decision tells us all we need to know. 

Israel does not want the world to know what is going on. It tells us that they are willing to use increasingly absurd and desperate measures to keep critics away, as it loses support across the globe. 

Above all, it tells us that we should not give up in our pursuit of truth, accountability and justice.

I have lost count of the number of demonstrations I have been on in solidarity with Palestine. Each time, I go with the memories of the people I have met at the forefront of my mind and I endeavour to quote at least one Palestinian in any speech I give. 

In my mind, it’s important to amplify the lived experiences of those enduring occupation, apartheid and genocide. It is their freedom which is egregiously curtailed – and it is their freedoms that we must defend. 

The Israeli government can ban me, but they can’t ban me from stating that they are committing genocide – and I will never stop campaigning until there is real justice, peace and freedom for the Palestinian people.

In our discussions of Palestine, we always emphasise the horror stories – but in my visits, I have experienced the humanity, the music, the art, the poetry, the joy, and the resilience of the Palestinian people. 

I have no interest in being given a tour of apartheid by the Israeli government. 

I do, however, have an unending determination to campaign for the only path to peace: the end of the occupation. 

It has been many years since I have visited Palestine. 

No matter what Israel does to intimidate us into silence and despair, I have not given up hope that one day, I may return to visit the children I once met – in a free and independent Palestine.

Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Ross.Mccafferty@metro.co.uk. 

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