SCHOOL and university students across Britain are set to walk out of classrooms tomorrow in a peaceful protest to demand an end to Israel’s war on Gaza.
The striking students are set to meet at rallies in Bristol, Glasgow, London and Manchester.
During the day, the students will deliver letters to their city and town halls demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and for the rights of Palestinian people to be upheld.
The strike is part of a larger workplace walkout called for by the Stop the War Coalition (StWC) and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
StWC officer and School Strike for Palestine organiser Shabbir Lakha said ahead of the action: “Schools and universities have been clamping down on students for supporting the people of Gaza, including referring them to the government’s counter-terrorism programme Prevent, which is an outrageous attack on their democratic rights and civil liberties.
“It is little wonder that young people up and down the country are determined to make their voices heard.
“We encourage children and adults from all communities to attend Wednesday’s events, and to use their voices to speak for safety, freedom and peace for all.”
StWC vice-chairman Chris Nineham said he expects the walkout will be the “biggest day of action yet.”
“For the first time, people in hundreds of workplaces, universities and colleges around the country will walk out, protest or rally.
“The planned actions show our anti-war movement is growing, but also growing more militant.”
Thousands of workers across the country will also be taking part in the day of action by downing their tools.
In central London, civil servants and other workers will join a lunchtime demonstration outside Parliament called by the PCS union, with speakers including PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote and John McDonnell MP.
Media Workers for Palestine have also organised a protest and rally outside BBC Broadcasting House.
Major NGOs called on Britain, the US and other Western powers today to resume funding to the United Nations relief agency in Gaza.
More than two million civilians who depend on UNRWA should not be punished due to not yet proven allegations against 12 former members of staff being involved in the October 7 Hamas attacks, they warned.
With a Channel 4 investigation finding Israel has provided “no evidence” to substantiate its allegations, the open letter by the International Rescue Committee, Oxfam, Save the Children, Refugees International, Care, Interaction, Mercy Corps and Norwegian Refugee Council, said the decision to temporarily pause funding for UNRWA will “dramatically weaken the backbone of the humanitarian response for 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza.”
While backing a thorough investigation into the allegations, it said: “The plain reality is that UNRWA’s humanitarian role in this crisis is indispensable and cannot remotely be replaced by any other aid organisation.”
The role of UNRWA’s more than 13,000 employees in Gaza, of whom 152 have been killed since the fighting began, has been “heroic and irreplaceable,” and the civilians who depend on them for life-saving aid “at a time of enormous peril and suffering should not be punished as a result.”
“This funding pause also poses major problems for UNRWA’s mission and its more than 30,000 staff throughout the wider region,” it added.
“It is imperative that the United States and other donors resume support to UNRWA as rapidly as possible to avoid damaging the Gaza aid operation at a critical time.”
With more than one million displaced Palestinians sheltering in UNRWA facilities across Gaza, the NGOs warned that other aid agencies cannot replicate its central role in the humanitarian response in Gaza, “and amidst the current crisis many will struggle to even maintain their current operations without UNRWA’s partnership and support.”
In response, StWC said in a statement: “The UK government’s withdrawal of funding from UNRWA without Israel offering any evidence for its allegations is a disgrace.
“It will be absolutely devastating to those reliant on UNRWA as famine grips Gaza and it's absolutely impossible to comprehend the cruelty of Rishi Sunak and his ministers.”
The school and workers’ strike also coincide with an 18-year-old trapped in Gaza and separated from his parents taking the government to court today for refusing him entry clearance to rejoin his family in Britain.
The young man is staying with extended family subject to heavy bombardment after being internally displaced several times and left homeless.
His parents stayed in Britain after visiting their two elder sons, who both arrived in the country on scholarships, on October 7 but the 18-year-old stayed behind to start his first year of university in Gaza.
“This situation is extremely grave,” his eldest brother told the Guardian.
“The anxiety is literally killing my mother, while my brother is alone, desperate and abandoned.”
The Home Office refused to grant him his urgent entry clearance after he applied in December based on the European Convention on Human Rights Article 8 — rights to family life.
Today his legal representatives will mount a legal challenge against the Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office after it was refused because he had not submitted his biometrics at a visa application centre (VAC) in Gaza or Egypt.
All VACs in Gaza have been closed due to the bombardment.
His solicitor Roopa Tanna said: “My client is an 18-year-old who is separated from his parents and closest family at a time when what matters most is for families to be united.
“His life as at risk and his parents fear losing their son forever if this matter is not swiftly resolved.”
A government spokesperson said: “All applications are carefully considered on their individual merits, and must meet the requirements of the immigration rules and published guidance.”
