Quaker statement to the UK government on Gaza: What more evidence do you need now?

“What more evidence do you need now?"

These are the words of Tom Fletcher, the UN's head of humanitarian affairs, as he briefed the UN Security Council earlier this week on the fast deteriorating situation in Gaza.

“What more evidence do you need now?"

We have evidence of mass forced hunger.

We have evidence of mass forced displacement.

We have evidence of mass killings.

We have evidence of mass atrocities.

And so Quakers echo these desperate words: “What more evidence do you need now?".

Keir Starmer, David Lammy, our government, and our MPs need no more evidence to act with urgency to end these crimes:

Stop all UK support for Israel's violence in Gaza.

Stop all UK arms exports to Israel immediately.

Use all the UK's levers to pressure the Israeli government and Hamas to agree an immediate, permanent ceasefire, release the hostages, and allow aid to enter unhindered.

As Tom Fletcher asked world leaders, “Will you act – decisively – to prevent genocide and to ensure respect for international humanitarian law? Or will you say instead that 'we did all we could'?".

Quakers uphold all those bearing witness and taking action to stop this atrocity.

To the children, men and women suffering unimaginably – Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and the Israeli hostages – we say this: We are sorry. We will not give up our call to end this. We will not stop until it stops.

Read and watch Tom Fletcher’s full briefing here