Dear Gareth Rogers, CEO of Farnborough International and owner of Farnborough Exhibition Centre,

RE: Don’t be complicit in a GENOCIDE at the International Armoured Vehicle Conference

You are holding an event in January which is going to enable the sales of weapons to a military currently committing war crimes. (According to Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, MSF). We implore you to ban any companies or delegations involved in the genocide in Gaza from attending your event. This includes the following companies that you have sponsoring your event: 

BAE Systems, General Dynamics Land Systems, Honeywell, Leonardo DRS, Milrem, Patria, RENK, Rheinmetall, Supacat, Teledyne Flir, Thales, Ultra PCS.

They are all involved in the supply of weapons to the Israeli military, a military that is indiscriminately murdering civilian men, women and children. So far 70,000 people have been murdered in Gaza. (Sources: BBC, The Guardian.)

We further implore you never to invite these companies (or any future companies with links to Israel) back to this event in the future until there are no longer crimes against humanity being committed with these weapons.

Signed,

Copy the following and email to alex.baker.mp@parliament.uk

(Don’t forget to sign your name at the bottom)

+++

Dear Alex Baker MP

RE: Genocide on your doorstep

In your constituency there is an event being held every year at the Farnborough Exhibition Centre that sells weapons to be used to commit war crimes. The International Armoured Vehicles Conference will be attended/sponsored by over 20 companies and delegations that contribute to the Israeli military’s genocide in Gaza. (A genocide as confirmed by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, MSF along with forced starvation). So far the Israeli army has indiscriminately murdered 45,000 innocent civilian men, women and children in Gaza. (Sources: Oxfam, United Nations.)

You have repeatedly stated you wish for a peaceful resolution in Gaza and for Israel to comply with International Humanitarian Law, so we implore you to take a stand and not let this event happen in your name. 

Please raise this issue in Parliament and with the Farnborough Exhibition Centre as you can not condone the sales of weapons that will be used in war crimes.

We ask that no weapon be bought or sold ever again in your constituency to those committing war crimes. This is an annual event that will continue to facilitate war crimes without your intervention!

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor” – Rev Desmond Tutu

Signed,

Copy the following and email to your local MP. You can find their email here

(Don’t forget to sign your name at the bottom)

+++

Dear MP

Re: Illegal Settlements in West Bank, Palestine

A recent statement by the UK Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Barbara Woodward, at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East makes it very clear that Israel continues to violate international law without consequence. 

Ambassador Bardara Woodward went on to demand that the UK government must do more to stop the systematic harassment, intimidation and violence on Palestinian civilians by Israeli settlers backed by the Israeli military. 

The statement reiterated that any attempt to alter the geographic or demographic make-up of the Occupied Palestinian Territories through the use of force and outside of a negotiated solution is wholly unacceptable and illegal.

The UK Government calls Israeli settlements illegal and a barrier to peace and, yet in spite of their words, they have taken no action.

As my representative in Parliament, the actions I want you to urge the UK government to take are:

• Criminalise charitable organisations set up to help fund settlements e.g. Jewish National Fund
• Ban Israeli settlement goods from the UK markets e.g. Mehadrin, Miriam, Shoham, Galilee, Hadiklaim and Achdut-Achva where we import dates, mangos, avocados, tahini, halva and bakery products.
• Stop UK companies such as JCB, Opodo and Greenkote profiting from illegal Israeli settlements
• Demand that Israel reunify Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, in line with 1967 borders and under the effective control of the Palestinian Authority.
• Place economic sanctions on Israel until it meets the1967 borders demand.
• Bring to justice those that forcibly remove Palestinian communities to make way for illegal Jewish-only settlements.

I look forward to your support in these actions.

Signed

Copy the following and email to your local MP. You can find their email here

(Don’t forget to sign your name at the bottom)

+++

Dear MP

Re: Ceasefire in Gaza Now!

A ceasefire is desperately needed in Gaza and the negotiations take place with the constant backdrop of unrelenting bombing by Israel of civilians, medical centres, schools and safe zones without adequate safeguarding of innocent loss of life. This is not acceptable under any part of international law.

As a member of the UK Parliament I urge you to tell the UK government that it must demand an unconditional ceasefire by Israel. There is clearly an imbalance of power in the region and Israel is exploiting one incident to justify abhorrent and outright illegal retaliation.

The number of times Israel has walked away from peace is now becoming a joke and clearly indicates it has no desire or intention of bringing an end to the death and destruction without external intervention. Intervention that the UK government has a legal and moral duty to perform.

• I ask you to raise this matter with the UK government now and tell them to demand Israel to cease the killing, not just agree to a negotiated agreement but actually stop the physical attacks taking place. 
• I ask you to demand the UK government to put sanctions, economic and military, in place that curb Israel’s ability to carry out its killing.
• I ask you to demand the UK representatives at the UN support UN resolutions that demand a ceasefire and no longer hide behind vetos or abstaining.

I hope I can count on your support in trying to end the heinous massacring of innocent life.

Signed

Copy the following and email to your local MP. You can find their email here

(Don’t forget to sign your name at the bottom)

+++

Dear MP

Re: Arms trade with Israel

As my representative in the UK Parliament I urge you to demand the UK stops arms licences and exports to the Government of Israel. This is just one crucial step towards an immediate and permanent ceasefire for all Palestinians and Israelis.

According to our laws, the UK Government must stop issuing licences for arms sales if there is a clear risk they might be used to commit serious violations of international humanitarian law.

From October 2023 to May 2024, the Government issued over 100 new licences allowing UK companies to sell arms to Israel. During this same time, Israel has been killing civilians in Gaza indiscriminately. It has been deliberately depriving them of the essentials they need to survive.

The International Court of Justice has ruled there is a ‘plausible risk of a genocide’ in Gaza, and war crimes and crimes against humanity are also being committed, with arrest warrants issued for the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhu and his Former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. There is no doubt the risk of genocide is horrifyingly real.

Until it stops selling arms to Israel, the UK is complicit in the killing of civilians in Gaza.

A petition set up by Oxfam shows the level of support in the UK for arms sales to Israel to stop.

Please be a voice for peace and stop the sale of arms to those committing war crime.

Signed