About County Durham Palestine Solidarity Campaign

Who We Are

We are people who live in County Durham, Darlington, and Teesside. We are deeply concerned about the plight of the Palestinian people. We support the Palestinian struggle to achieve a just and lasting peace settlement. We are an affiliated branch of the national Palestine Solidarity Campaign. We support the work of the Durham University Friends of Palestine, a student society. We support the work of the Durham Palestine Educational Trust www.dpet.org.uk.

July 4th 2011, marks the tenth anniversary of the launch by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign of the boycott of Israeli goods at a meeting at the House of Commons, London in 2001. Many other organisations and individuals supported this response to the call from Palestinian civil society for international action for boycotts, divestment and sanctions upon Israel.

Please see below documents from our archive which show the original statements and signatories to the campaign. We will be releasing more over the coming weeks.

Two Protesters Injured with Live Ammunition and one arrested in Deir Qaddis

Demonstrators disrupted construction of a new neighborhood in the adjacent settlement of Nili. Israeli soldiers responded with baton charges, tear-gas, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition. One organizer was arrested and several olive trees were burned down.

Two Palestinian youths in their twenties were hit by live ammunition today, during a demonstration against the settlement expansion in the West Bank village of Ni’lin and Dier Qaddis. A 24 year-old protester, was shot twice – in the pelvis and in the shoulder, and the second, a 22 year-old, was shot in the back of his thigh and will require an operation. Mohammed Amirah, a member of the Ni’lin popular committee, was arrested after seriously beaten, apparently for incitement.

The demonstration was organized by the Ni’lin, Budrus and Deir Qaddis popular committees.

Residents of Ni’lin, Deir Qaddis and Budrus, accompanied by Israeli and international supporters.

As the protesters advanced towards the bulldozers, Israeli soldiers and Border Police officers first fired a few rounds of live fire in the air and very quickly moved on to shoot tear-gas and rubber-coated bullets directly at the protesters. Despite the attack, demonstrators managed to reach the bulldozers and disrupt construction for half an hour. Then the soldiers started beating the demonstrators and arrested Mohammed Amireh.

As the protesters retreated, soldiers followed them to the edge of the village, where clashes ensued and where the two were shot. In addition to the two protesters hit shot with live ammunition, six more were shot with rubber coated steel bullets.

The next monthly meeting will be in September.
Please watch this space or e-mail us and tell us that you would like to receive notice plus agenda.

Go here to view petition to ban Israel from London 2012 Olympic Games::
http://www.petitiononline.com/12101982/petition.html

For a remarkably honest assessment of what USA gets (and doesn’t get) from its alliance with Israel, read following from former US Ambassador Chas Freeman in a debate sponsored by neo-con Nixon Center.
http://www.nixoncenter.org/index.cfm?action=showpage&page=Freeman-Israel-Asset-or-Liability

Lots of volunteers needed 8am to 3pm for
Arabic coffee stall in aid of MAP
PSC tombola stall in aid of Durham PSC campaigning funds
Durham PSC information stall, T-shirts etc
Stall for Palestinian olive oil and other produce
Campaigning for Gaza ships flotilla
Durham Palestinian Educational Trust used book stall

Durham PSC information stall in Millennium Place, Durham with campaign for Gaza boat convoy 11am to 3pm.
Please come along to help

The Durham Palestine Educational Trust and the Ruth First Educational Trust are running their annual Banquet in Durham Town Hall on Saturday 20 February.
For details and tickets see www.dpet.org.uk

Join us in Millennium Square, Durham 11am to 3pm with our PSC information stall and campaign for Gaza boats.

County Hall 7pm (refreshments 6.30pm)
Short business meeting followed by eye witness account from a participant in the Viva Palestina convoy to Gaza