Author Archives: Diana Safieh

A review of Avi Shlaim’s and Benny Morris’s books, by Ronald Sanders, in The New York Times of of September 4, 1988 COLLUSION ACROSS THE JORDAN King Abdullah, the Zionist Movement, and the Partition of Palestine. By Avi Shlaim. Maps. … Continue reading →

By Chris McGreal, in The Guardian on 11 November 2022 The Balfour Project is reprinting this article from The Guardian as an illustration of how the catch-all wording of the so-called BDS Bill the British Government has said it will … Continue reading →

Online talk given in September 2021 Hannah is the director and a founder of Yachad. Yachad works to mobilise British Jews in support of a political resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. She previously chaired the Jewish Social Action Forum for … Continue reading →

By Oren Ziv, July 8, 2024 Israeli soldiers describe the near-total absence of firing regulations in the Gaza war, with troops shooting as they please, setting homes ablaze and leaving corpses on the streets — all with their commanders’ permission In … Continue reading →

The Times of London has published this letter from John Bond, a founding member of the Balfour Project and a member of the Balfour Project Advisory Forum. Sir, I disagree with the assertion in your leading article that any democratic government … Continue reading →

Transcript from our ‘Peace with Justice – how to get there’ Conference in London on 6th June 2024. Daniel Levy Confusion reigns since President Biden gave his ceasefire speech on 31 May. The White House then issued a statement signed … Continue reading →

Israel’s war on Gaza may be “a curtain call” for the post-World War Two international rules-based order, Amnesty International secretary general Agnes Callamard said on Thursday. “The gravity of the violations being committed, the fact that we are witnessing them … Continue reading →

Britain must recognise Palestine. It is a step towards upholding the Palestinian right of self-determination – a fundamental right under international law. Most UN member states have already recognised Palestine. Recognition cannot be dependent on negotiations, as the British Government … Continue reading →

What We Offer KS3-5 Source Analysis Masterclass

Palestinian self-determination is key to the wellbeing of Palestinians – and of Israelis. The British Government has wasted 10 years and more, waiting for “the right time” to recognise the State of Palestine. Now is the time to recognise Palestine, … Continue reading →

 Gaza ceasefire now: Building hope for a better future for Palestinians and Israelis, with equal rights and mutual security A call on the British Government by the Balfour Project This cannot be allowed to continue: the civilian deaths and mass … Continue reading →

Sir Vincent Fean, Balfour Project Trustee, on Al Jazeera Inside Story, 9 November 2023   Britain in Palestine 1917-1948 Film Palestinians live moment to moment as Israel’s bombardment continues. Life in Gaza is dominated by fears of Israeli attacks, finding … Continue reading →

The Palestinian-American lawyer, activist and academic Noura Erekat gave an address entitled “In This Moment” on 1 Nov 2023 to the Palestinian Festival of Literature in New York City. The Balfour Project is running this excerpt of her “address to … Continue reading →

The Balfour Project podcast Keys: a Troubled Inheritance, tracing the stories of two families, one Jewish and victims of the Nazi genocide, the other Palestinian, uprooted by the Nakba, the Catastrophe of 1948, is written and presented by Michael Joseph, a son … Continue reading →

I draw to your attention this note below sent to all UK Parliamentarians in the SOAS “Influencing the Corridors of Power” series. It seeks to describe what is and is not legally permissible in this war. Further to the analysis … Continue reading →

The Prime Minister Lecture Professor Salam Fayyad Prime Minister of The Palestinian National Authority (2007-2013) “In conversation with Salam Fayyad” Professor Raphael Cohen-Almagor (Director, MESC) Sir Vincent Fean (Trustee, The Balfour Project Charity; MESC) Sir Tom Phillips (MESC) Link to register: … Continue reading →

UN Secretary-General: ‘end this vicious circle of violence’ Israeli actions in Gaza breach international law, says EU’s top diplomat Humanitarian Affairs chief: the laws of war must be upheld    

UN leaders speak reason in the midst of madness By Andrew Whitley, Balfour Project Chair of Trustees In the midst of so much madness, misrepresentation and moral equivocation, it can be hard to find voices of sanity and reason. One … Continue reading →

On-line webinar: Tuesday 21 November, 3pm (London time) In Search of the River Jordan is the new book by award-winning writer and journalist James Fergusson. Travelling through Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, Fergusson describes how historic water resources such as … Continue reading →

In its statement of 13 October, the Balfour Project set out its view on war crimes committed by Hamas and by Israel. Nothing can excuse the murder of civilians and the taking of hostages by Hamas. These are war crimes. … Continue reading →

In our statement of 13 October on war crimes in Israel and in Gaza, we mentioned that the Balfour Project charity has submitted evidence to the Commons Foreign Affairs Ctee inquiry into the UK’s engagement with the Middle East and … Continue reading →

The Balfour Project condemns Hamas’ act of terrorism of 7 October, including heinous murder and the taking of mass hostages in Israel. Securing their safe release must be a top priority. Those responsible for this outrage must be held to … Continue reading →

By Mandy Turner, originally for Jadaliyya [This is a review essay of Richard Falk, John Dugard, and Michael Lynk (with a foreword by Francesca Albanese), Protecting Human Rights in Occupied Palestine: Working Through the United Nations (Atlanta: Clarity Press, 2022).] … Continue reading →

John McHugo, Balfour Project Trustee, internation law expert and Middle East historian writes: The International Court of Justice is the judicial organ of the United Nations. In December 2022 it was requested by the UN General Assembly to clarify “the … Continue reading →

Video published by The Middle East Eye on 25 September 2023. The United Kingdom played a pivotal role in the dispossession of the Palestinian people and the Zionist takeover of historical Palestine, says Middle Eastern historian Peter Shambrook. Speaking with … Continue reading →

By Daniel Levy, 13 Sept 2023 September 13, 2023, marks the 30-year anniversary of the signing of the Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles (DOP) on the White House South Lawn. What seemed like an auspicious moment in the history of the … Continue reading →

By Peter Oborne From Middle East Eye The anti-BDS Bill trashes the UK’s global reputation, yet Sunak’s morally broken government is pushing it through without serious scrutiny. On 11 and 12 Sept, British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly received a hero’s … Continue reading →

28th September 2023 The 29th of September marks the centenary of when the League of Nations ‘Mandate Agreement’ for Palestine entered into force in international law.  This legal instrument purported to put the commitment to establishing a Jewish homeland in … Continue reading →

Evidence Submitted to House of Commons Committee on the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Public Bill, 5 September 2023 With a host of other pressing matters, domestic and foreign, already on its plate, puzzlingly the Sunak government has … Continue reading →

By James FergussonYale University Press£16.50ISBN 978-0-300-24415-1 Review by Ian Portman James Fergusson’s great aunt Frances was a keen advocate of a Jewish state in Palestine. Her mother, Blanche Dugdale, was Arthur Balfour’s biographer – herself an ardent Zionist and a … Continue reading →