Gaza needs a real humanitarian lifeline and an immediate end to attacks, not just a three hour break in violence’, Richard Burden MP has said today.
The continuing slaughter in Gaza is an outrage. The international community has to make clear that respecting its calls for a ceasefire is not simply an optional extra for those launching attacks on either side. International humanitarian law must be upheld. That means protecting civilians from military attack. Common humanity also demands that food, medicines and other essential supplies must be …
Earlier this week, I wrote a short piece about why the international community should no longer allow the Israeli blockade to continue its slow strangulation of Gaza and the humanitarian crisis it is causing. Barely had I finished writing when news began to come through that Israel had begun to open its borders to let more humanitarian supplies through. Ominously though, the news was not …
On Christmas Eve, I received the following bulletin about Gaza from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Jerusalem (www.ochaopt.org).
The Gaza crossings have been closed completely for eight consecutive days including for humanitarian supplies. This is the second longest period the crossings have remained closed since the Hamas takeover in June 2007.
Richard Burden MP, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All Party Parliamentary Group, has today called on President Peres, the next Israeli Prime Minister and President Elect Obama to embrace new thinking to secure peace and justice in the Middle East for both Israelis and Palestinians. As Foreign Secretary David Miliband completes his visit to the Middle East, today sees both Israeli President Shimon …
‘The international community must seize new opportunities to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and help to help achieve a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine’, Richard Burden MP has said today. Mr Burden is a member of the UK’s House of Commons International Development Committee. Today the Committee has published a new report on the Humanitarian and Development Situation in the …
I was Labour Member of Parliament for Birmingham Northfield between 1992 and 2019 and a former Shadow Transport Minister. I now chair Healthwatch in Birmingham and Solihull, and the West Midlands Board of Remembering Srebrenica. I also work as a public affairs consultant. I am an effective community advocate and stakeholder alliance builder with a passion for human rights. I am a trustee of the Balfour Project charity and of Citizens Advice Birmingham, and a former Chair of Medical Aid for Palestinians.