After years hidden away, Oldham’s memorial to six local volunteers who died fighting fascism in the Spanish civil war has been restored to public view, marking both a victory for campaigners and a renewed tribute to the town’s proud International Brigade heritage, says ROB HARGREAVES
THE most recent article I wrote for this newspaper was headlined: Israel-Gaza: We need an immediate ceasefire and proper humanitarian aid.
There is even more need now for the same demands. The Israeli attacks on Gaza have only intensified since and the trickle of humanitarian aid threatens to put the lives of the entire population of over 2 million at risk.
Recently, Craig Mokhiber director of the New York office of the UN high commissioner for human rights resigned in disgust. He characterised the most recent events as a “textbook case of genocide.” That judgment seems right. If so, it is a genocide not only accepted but actively encouraged by Western governments including our own.
Rishi Sunak has announced the despatch of British military personnel to the Eastern Mediterranean explicitly to help Israel and Biden has sent two fleet groups. This is more than moral support. Much more. It is active engagement as a combatant even as war crimes are being committed and genocide is being carried out.
The catastrophe unfolding in Gaza – where Palestinians are freezing to death in tents – is not a natural disaster but a calculated outcome of Israel’s ongoing blockade, aid restrictions and continued violence, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
Our Foreign Secretary now condemns Israel in the Commons, yet Britain still supplies weapons and intelligence for its bombing campaigns — as the horror reaches perhaps the final stage, action must finally replace words, writes DIANE ABBOTT MP



