In the UK, the persecution of the left wing of the Palestine Defense Movement continues. In the working-class city of Manchester, where the movement is most active, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign was chastised by the national leadership for defending “brave fighters” who presented a “vision of a liberated Palestine”.
4 Manchester managers were suspended by the national administration. The president, treasurer, secretary and campaign officer of Manchester CSP were suspended without notice. National secretary Ben Sofa said: “This is not a punitive suspension and will only last until the PSC Executive Committee investigates the matter and considers the report.”
The day after the suspension, the CSP published a statement on its website which suggested that social media posts, which did not name the Manchester CSP, “may have advocated the deliberate killing of members of the public”. [israelenses]” and what he described as “hostage taking”. Later, CSP director Ben Jamal told Sky News that Hamas, the leading Palestinian opposition group, “violated international law” on October 7 because it “targeted and killed civilians”.
It is clear that the CSP has completely surrendered to the right and Zionism. They act as an internal police force within the movement, preventing one of its most active sectors from acting in defense of Palestine. No one can defend the Palestinian armed struggle, not even the Zionists, in an abstract way. Palestine cannot be defended without defending the Palestinian struggle.
When reached by phone, Ben Sofa declined to answer questions on the record, insisting that emails be sent to the CSP media address. Asked whether he believed Palestinians had the right to defend themselves using armed force, Sofa declined to answer. He declined to answer when asked about the CSP’s position on the use of armed security by Palestinians. Ben Sofa is associated with the Labor Party, whose leadership is ultra-Zionist.
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