TODAY sees the launching of a unique and much-needed initiative — a founding conference in London and across the world of solidarity organisations to launch a Global Alliance for Palestine.

With Mustafa Barghouti, Jeremy Corbyn and other key figureheads including Yanis Varoufakis, over 30 solidarity organisations from 20 countries spanning the globe — from Brazil, Chile, to India, South Africa, Spain, Germany and many more — will be represented.

The intent is to establish a united, global front for justice for Palestine. The first initiative of its kind, it will be inclusive and independent, a broad-based alliance uniting solidarity and civil society organisations, trade unions and students, political and cultural figures.

Its aim will be to amplify and supplement Palestinian voices — to listen to, not supplant them. Recognising that once again the Palestinian people are facing a critical moment in their history.

The world has turned. Most people, at least those with an ounce of humanity, are appalled by Israel’s genocidal war. A war unsuccessful in defeating Palestinian resistance, now culminating in deliberately creating a famine to try to starve the Palestinians into submission.

Using starvation as a weapon of war is an ancient tactic known since Roman times. It has been used by many; the British in Malaysia, the US planned to starve Japan before deciding to use the atomic bomb, the Germans used it against Leningrad and many more.

Not a new tactic but now recognised under international law as a crime against humanity.

Also different from the past is that the whole world is witnessing it via social media. And Israel just doesn’t care that the world can see.

Using its ubiquitous media response of “self-defence, Hamas, hostages” and claims of being the “most moral army” when challenged over its latest war crime, Israel believes it has impunity to cross every red line, to do everything and anything it wants to wipe out the Palestinian people.

It is not surprising it has come to think like this. While Gaza starves, Lammy fiddles — issuing statements, one after another, but never committing to do anything meaningful.

Worse than that, Britain is still participating in the war by supplying intelligence, logistics support and weapons.

After Israel lost the social media battle during Operation Cast Lead in 2008-9, it decided to weaponise its supporters around the world. It has put millions into resourcing its friends and allies to repeat its script, to intimidate its opponents.

There is now a modern, efficient, Israeli-sponsored media and political machine spanning most of the West and beyond.

But Palestine has us and the truth.

It is in this context that the establishment of the Global Alliance for Palestine is so important.

Israel has, because of its crimes, lost the hearts and minds of humanity, but it still has hegemonic control over key Western levers of power, most notably in the US, Britain and Germany.

The efforts and actions of the solidarity movement since October 2023, in the face of growing repression, have been monumental: a huge social movement that has refused to be intimidated.

But to have the impact that is necessary to move the mountains that block the way a global approach is needed to unify and amplify that solidarity. To reshape the public discourse globally, to enable real political influence we need to use our strengths — to unite, work together and join up our solidarity.

We cannot win working, however hard, in isolation within our own country borders.

Using the growing support for boycott, divestment and now, even by some governments, sanctions — we need to challenge the complicity and repression of hostile governments, creating a space and a shield for pro-Palestinian advocacy.

Not only has Israel lost its “sense of sin” — the difference between right and wrong — but so have its Western allies.

Israel squirms and equivocates trying to shift the threshold of the definitions of genocide and famine.

It cannot be a genocide, the Holocaust, the only true genocide, was a lot worse. It is not famine, there is still food, it is Hamas blocking the food trucks and making us shoot at those queuing for food. And the West still lamely goes along with it.

This is not a matter of definition, the reality is so stark even the media, which has been parroting Israel’s propaganda for years, now feels obliged to report and even mentions the words genocide and famine from time to time.

But dare to take action in support of Palestine, march, protest, criticise Israel, then the threshold for being targeted as antisemitic is now non-existent.

Shouting Free Gaza, waving a Palestinian flag all become crimes, while the real criminals roam free fearing no repercussions, terrorising Palestinians including unprecedented numbers of woman and children.

Solicitors at the ICC, UN spokespeople get threatened for their advocacy.

We need to change this. That is why solidarity organisations and individuals who have been speaking up for Palestine are coming together to challenge these systems of oppression and build co-ordinated global pressure to end Israel’s illegal occupation and apartheid regime.

We need to stop the settlers running wild, killing at will as they violently colonise Palestinian land. It is not just a ceasefire that is required, but decolonisation — taking down the wall, uprooting the settlements, taking back the land.

A co-ordinated, principled global alliance can be effective in helping to shift the balance of power that will be required to achieve this. It won’t come about easily or automatically just by giving it a name and wishing it were so.

It will take hard work and effort, mapping the countries and organisations involved. Targeting those not yet involved and getting them on board.

Most of all it will need to advocate taking action that is effective and visible. This is done by “jumping together,” through unity — unity in action and deed.

Some years ago, a conference in Istanbul of Palestinians Abroad, set themselves three objectives within the Palestinian diaspora. As Palestinians, to link up and join together; to get in touch with and work with the solidarity movement in their country and then, to jointly engage with and take on the political hierarchy to win support for Palestine.

This is what Israel has worked at doing for decades. As supporters of Palestine, we need to get organised in building an alternative global solidarity movement. The protests have been amazing, unprecedented, but alone they will not force governments to act.

Palestinian history has been distorted in order to justify the Israeli narrative. In contrast we must be rooted in truth and international law. We’re not just responding to injustice — we’re building an organised international front to end it.

Israel’s war crimes, naked lies and hypocrisy have created the potential for this to be a turning point in building a global movement for Palestine — unified, strategic, and unapologetically moral.

We must no longer allow Western governments and institutions to give impunity to Israel, in so doing enabling its ongoing occupation and apartheid regime without fearing any consequences for its actions.

The world is beginning to see through Israel’s lies. A Global Alliance for Palestine, linking the global South with the global North, bridging solidarity and indigenous movements in Latin America, Africa, Europe, Asia and North America, is a unique opportunity and powerful weapon in our struggle to help get justice for Palestine.

Thank you to Jeremy Corbyn, Mustafa Barghouti and everyone else involved in taking the first step to making this a reality.