Community and faith leaders along with a member of the local parliament travel to 10 Downing Street to present the ‘One Leicester’ Peace Flag produced by the Federation of Muslim Organisations (FMO) in solidarity with the people of Gaza, who have suffered and continue to endure weeks of unbearable hardship.
The atrocities in Gaza have been unimaginable, with the slaughtering of innocent women and children; murder of children playing on the beach; bombing of hospitals; the killing of entire families and much more heartache, though the spirit, patience and humility of the Gazan people remains steadfast.
The black, white, green and red flag, symbolising unity, has been signed by hundreds of local Leicester residents to show their support including elected MPs, Keith Vaz, Jon Ashworth and Liz Kendall before being presented at 10 Downing Street at noon today.
Suleman Nagdi, PR Officer of the Federation of Muslim Organisations shared from 10 Downing Street, “We wish to channel the views of the ordinary citizens of Leicester and Leicestershire”
“This is a plea from the common man on the streets to say that peace must return to the holy land, it is important that peace prevails at the end, we are calling for an immediate ceasefire a long lasting ceasefire and a lifting of the blockade of the Gaza people”
Representatives from the Federation of Muslim Organisations; Riyaz Laher, Suleman Nagdi MBE DL and Ismail Patel, together with Keith Vaz MP for Leicester East and Leicester’s Assistant Mayor Councillor Manjula Sood, representing Leicester City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby, gathered to present a letter of support from the Mayor, together with the peace flag and a letter of condemnation also signed by hundreds of local residents to the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street.
Keith Vaz MP for Leicester East spoke to Pukaar News at 10 Downing street and told of what he is doing to help the situation in Gaza “what we want is peace in the Middle East, yesterday afternoon I spoke to Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary and I told him what the federation had done and I asked for his assurances that the British government was doing all that it could in order to support peace in the middle east, and he reassured me that they were doing everything they could do”
“at the moment on the table is an Egyptian peace plan that calls for an immediate cease fire, and I think if both parties all parties adhere to that plan then it will mean that the bombing and killing would come to an end”.
As the pain and suffering in Gaza continues, the flag, along with peaceful demonstrations up and down the country, have been a message to the Gazan people that the local communities share their pain and will do whatever is in their power to support and highlight their plight.
