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LFI Honorary Chair Mark Sewards Leads Historic First Delegation to Israel and Bahrain

Posted 13 February, 2026 in Abraham Accords, Coexistence, Israel, Israeli Politics, Middle East, News, Peace process
Mark Sewards has become the first Labour Friends of Israel chair to visit the Kingdom of Bahrain, following a visit to Israel where he met senior political figures and peace activists. While in Israel, the MP for Leeds South West and Morley met Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog; the leader of Labour’s sister party, the…

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Mark Sewards: “It is now imperative for the UK to reset its relationship with Israel”

Posted 13 February, 2026 in Abraham Accords, Antisemitism, Coexistence, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Israeli Politics, Labour Party, Middle East, News, Peace process
LFI honorary chair Mark Sewards has written the article below for Jewish News. Click here to read the original. This week, I am visiting Israel and Bahrain; my first trip to the region since becoming Labour Friends of Israel’s new parliamentary chair. My visit comes at a moment of huge opportunity and challenge. Israelis…

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Mark Sewards meets with Palestinian Peace Activist Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib

Posted 13 February, 2026 in Abraham Accords, Coexistence, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Middle East, News, Palestinian Territories, Peace process
LFI honorary chair Mark Sewards met with Palestinian-American humanitarian peace activist Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib in parliament on 21 January. At Portcullis House, the Labour MP for Leeds South West and Morley discussed with the peace activist the progress made on the Gaza peace plan, the steps necessary as the second phase is set to…

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LFI at JLM one-day conference 2026

Posted 12 February, 2026 in Antisemitism, Iran, Israel, Labour Party, Middle East, News, Peace process
LFI had a major presence at the Jewish Labour Movement one-day conference in north London, including a stall and several sessions on issues relating to Israel and the wider Middle East. The day began with an event on the upcoming 2026 Knesset elections, chaired by former LFI chair Louise Ellman, alongside Dr Shai Agmon of…

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UK government to convene conference on International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace

Posted 8 December, 2025 in Coexistence, Israel, Labour Party, Middle East, News, Palestinian Territories, Peace process
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper MP In a major step forward for a longstanding LFI policy ask, the UK will host a key peacebuilding conference on 12 March next year to help establish an International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace. The conference at Lancaster House will bring together civil society leaders from across the region and delivers on…

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Water diplomacy in action

Posted 13 November, 2025 in Middle East, News, Regional Peacebuilding, Voices for Change
Water diplomacy in action by Gidon Bromberg In a region shaped by conflict and division, EcoPeace Middle East offers a compelling alternative: cooperation through environmental diplomacy. For over three decades, this Israeli-Palestinian-Jordanian organisation has been championing one of the region’s most vital and politically charged issues – water.  Founded in 1994, EcoPeace stands as…

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Samantha Niblett: Hamas “must have nothing to do” with Gaza’s future

Posted 29 October, 2025 in Hamas, Middle East, News, Palestinian Territories
Samantha Niblett MP At today's Urgent Question on the situation in Gaza, South Derbyshire MP Samantha Niblett raised the recent executions by Hamas against Palestinians in Gaza. She asked: "All Members have been appalled by the scenes that emerged from Gaza in the wake of the ceasefire, showing Hamas executing people in the streets as they…

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A just, democratic society requires gender equality

Posted 15 October, 2025 in Analysis, Gender & Sexual Equality, Israel, Israeli Politics, Middle East, News, Voices for Change
A just, democratic society requires gender equality Tal Hochman  Last April, several months after the outbreak of the war with Hamas, Iran launched its first rocket attack on Israel. Panic spread across the country, and the government decided to shut down all educational institutions. But then, at 1 in the morning and just a…

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Sowing regional seeds of hope

Posted 10 October, 2025 in Abraham Accords, Coexistence, Israel, Israeli Politics, Middle East, News, Palestinian Territories, Peace process, Regional Peacebuilding, Voices for Change
Sowing regional seeds of hope Eli Bar-On, Dr Najah Al Otaibi and Ghanem Nuseiben In May, at the historic Château d’Ermenonville outside Paris, something remarkable happened. Dozens of leaders from across the Middle East and North Africa – Israelis, Palestinians, Moroccans, Egyptians, Bahrainis, Jordanians and many others – gathered not to debate borders or assign…

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Pursuing equality and democracy for all Israel’s citizens 

Posted 6 October, 2025 in Coexistence, Israel, Israeli Politics, Middle East, News, Peace process, Shared Society, Uncategorized, Voices for Change
Pursuing equality and democracy for all Israel’s citizens  By Shahira Shalabi The concept of democracy faces a profound challenge in today's Israel. The definition of the state as both "Jewish and democratic" creates an inherent tension in relation to its Palestinian citizens. Also referred to, especially internationally, as Arab citizens of Israel, this population,…

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