PRESS RELEASE

27th December 2008

MCB Condemns Israel's Massacre of Palestinians in Gaza

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) condemns in the strongest terms Israel's military campaign in the blockaded Gaza Strip. The MCB is appalled by this excessive and indiscriminate use of state sanctioned terror. Israel's decision to commence its attack in the early afternoon of 27th December as children were leaving their schools, causing the maximum casualties with some 205 civilians being killed so far. By any measure of respect for innocent human life, this is unacceptable.

'The Israelis have once again chosen to stage their assault when Western governments are in recess', said Dr Daud Abdullah Deputy Secretary General. "We call on Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take a firm stand against this disgraceful attack. The time has come for a total lifting of the political and diplomatic cover that has allowed Israel to perpetrate these atrocities", he added.

Israel's use of F16 war-planes against civilian targets in the Gaza Strip confirms yet again the failure of our government to fulfil our international obligation (under the Fourth Geneva Convention) to end the Israeli Occupation and its unmitigated use of state sanctioned terror against the Palestinian people. That it comes just days after it denied entry to the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights to the Occupied Palestinian Territories suggests that the Israeli leadership clearly intended to conceal the evidence of its war crimes.

'After the failure of its siege of the Gaza Strip the Israeli political leadership has resorted to these desperate measures to change the political realties in Gaza', said Dr Abdullah.

The MCB demands an immediate end to the Israeli state's terrorisation of the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip and its full compliance with all international resolutions.

[END]Notes to Editors:

The Muslim Council of Britain is the UK's largest Muslim umbrella body with around 500 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools.
Media enquiries should be addressed to the MCB Media Office on 0845 26 26 786 or 07956 353 738. Email: media@mcb.org.uk.

Non-media enquiries should be addressed to the MCB Office at The Muslim Council of Britain, PO Box 57330, London E1 2WJ. Tel: 0845 26 26 786 Fax: 0207 247 7079

This press release and other MCB publications and information are available on the MCB website at www.mcb.org.uk