Activist delegation > LFI
Senior Labour party activists visited Israel and the Palestinian territories last week, many of them for the first time, as part of a delegation led by LFI and We Believe in Israel.
The group, including leaders from Labour affiliates, thinktanks and campaign groups, visited Yad Vashem, the Knesset, met with Israeli Labor leader Merav Michaeli, as well as Palestinian representatives.
The delegation also visited the Gaza border region, and while in the West Bank met with Elias Zananiri, vice-chairman of the PLO’s Committee for Interaction with Israeli Society, as well as touring Jerusalem’s Old City, Ben Gurion University, and the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation.
Josh Williams, deputy director of Labour Together and speechwriter to senior MPs, tweeted that the experience had allowed him to meet “extraordinary people, both Israelis and Palestinians, committed to two states and peace”.
Harrow Labour councillor and co-chair of the Labour Foreign Policy Group Peymana Assad likewise said it was a “privilege to join this delegation and to see first-hand the realities of everyday life for Israelis and Palestinians”.
“Visiting the region has furthered my understanding of the challenges and complexities, and ultimately the need for a negotiated two-state solution.
“It has been an honour to meet young Israelis and Palestinians who continue to have hope for a more peaceful and prosperous future.”
LFI director Michael Rubin said: “As we approach the next general election and work towards a Labour government, it’s crucial that as many people in the party at all levels have the opportunity to visit Israel”.