Palestine Action and the Genocide Lie
This Saturday, August 9th, Palestine Action campaigners will once again be on the streets trying to provoke the police to arrest them. Here Mark Birbeck looks at the most dangerous part of their campaign—promoting the lie that there is a genocide in Gaza.
Since July 5th, when the UK government's proscription of Palestine Action came into effect, activists around the country have been provoking their own arrests by publicly declaring support for the now illegal organisation.
Under a campaign called Lift the Ban, organisers publicise their plans in advance to ensure the police are forced to turn up. This Saturday, August 9th, will see their largest ever activity, with the campaign aiming to attract over 500 people to come and break the law. (They claim they now have over 1000 signed up.)
The Metropolitan Police say they are equally determined and will not back down. Indeed they are already preparing to ensure they have sufficient space to meet the demand.
Rajeev Syal
But whilst the battle between the activists and the Met is important for the law and the definition of terrorism—and we don't agree with the proscription of Palestine Action or their characterisation as 'terrorists'—it's the message that supporters have scrawled on the placards in order to provoke their arrest that is more important for Our Fight; they do not simply profess support for Palestine Action, but state:
I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.
The Myth of the 'Greater Crime'
The implication of coupling support for Palestine Action with opposition to genocide is as sophisticated as it is dangerous. They accuse Israel of committing a genocide in Gaza and then demand not only that this should excuse their own crimes, but that anyone who doesn't agree with them is trying to 'silence' any dissent around the war—the same argument that is being used by everyone from Kneecap to Royal Opera House employees.
Our Fight
This deceit of the genocide lie is rapidly gaining the status of common sense, yet the proof of this 'greater crime' is sorely lacking. The claims of so-called humanitarian campaign groups and 'leading genocide scholars' are little more than circular repetitions of each other, in turn repeating Hamas casualty figures and a few select quotes from Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu (about Amalak) and former defence minister Yoav Gallant (about Hamas being "human animals").
Yet the one thing that no-one repeats is that Israel is at war with an Islamist death cult—one that has woven military infrastructure into civic life, creating hundreds of miles of tunnels underneath hospitals, schools and mosques. It's only possible to claim there is a genocide if Hamas is written from the story—something every genocide-claiming article or report you read seems more than happy to do.
Standing Up to the Lie
Since the debate around proscription started, Our Fight campaigners have been protesting wherever Palestine Action raised the issue. We challenged them on June 23rd, when they took over the streets around Trafalgar Square.
We challenged them outside the Royal Courts of Justice on July 4th, when Huda Ammori sought to reverse the democratic vote of the UK's MPs.
And we challenged them in Parliament Square on June 19th, when they forced the Met to arrest a collection of their silver-haired campaigners.
The 'genocide lie' is the most significant myth around Israel's war against Hamas, since it is used to justify everything from anti-Semitic attacks on the street, to murderous chants by Kneecap and Bob Vylan, to Palestine Solidarity Campaign marches, boycotts by the Royal Opera House, cancelation of Edinburgh Fringe comedians, and of course, Palestine Action activists pouring paint into aircraft engines.
Our Fight is committed to challenging this lie wherever we can, despite the harassment, shouting down, and physical violence that always ensues.
If you are concerned about the growth of this lie as the foundation for the growing attacks on Israel and the shocking rise in anti-Semitism, it's time to speak out.
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Further Reading
The most widely quoted article that puts the case for there being a genocide in Gaza comes from genocide scholar Omer Bartov, writing in The New York Times:
A detailed rebuttal of the article comes from John Spencer, a military historian and expert in modern warfare:
John Spencer
A broader analysis of Omer Bartov's trajectory that predates his The New York Times article comes from Daniel Ben-Ami on his Radicalism of Fools website:
Daniel Ben-Ami
Another important take posits the 'genocide lie' in the decolonisation narrative, which asserts that Israel is by definition 'genocidal' due to its origins as a 'settler state':
Matthew Bolton
Dr. Verena Buser challenges Amnesty International's claims of genocide in its 2024 report You Feel Like You are Subhuman, and also confronts the colonial-settler argument:
Verena Buser
