Another excellent demo last night with a lot of support from visitors and members of the public alike. There's quite a solid contingent on the picket which is essential to maintaining our presence and building up support and solidarity. Last night was very vibrant and full of energy, an energy reached a crescendo when one of our Palestinian protestors was unlawfully arrested by the police. His crime apparently was harassment and was arrested under Section 5 of the Public Order Act. In reality his only 'crime' was his lawful right to respond (in neither a physical or obscene manner) to insults by Zionists such as 'go home terrorist' & 'go back to where you came from' - the typical fascist and racist filth which people have to contend with and who have every right to respond to.

Here again we see the allegiance of the police and British state to Zionism and imperialism. The arrest did literally stop the whole of that part of a busy Oxford St in its tracks as people gazed and pondered at one man being wrestled and held down by 4 police officers. As a result of the arrest the picket grew to the biggest since the last unlawful arrests several months ago and protestors and public alike joined in to shouts of 'British police, racist police!' and alike. Many who had joined promised to return next week and were shocked to see that if you protest in support of Palestine in Britain you can get arrested. The demo continued (minus our lawyer who went to the police st) to the end as energetic, political, vocal and vibrant as I can remember for a long time.

Rather than just end and go home everyone rallied together and we had a mobile demo down the short stretch of Oxford St to Marylebone police Station, with flags flying and chants of solidarity for our Palestinian friend and comrade who had been arrested. We then waited outside the Station chanting and jeering, getting more support from passers-by and pestered the police until he was finally released.

Here and in Israel Palestinians are being victimised. Only this week thousands of Palestinians have called a systematic hunger-strike in Israeli Gaols to protest their conditions. They have called for basic human rights such as visits from families, access to lawyers and medical aid. A senior Israeli minister responded to the strike by claiming he would rather let them all starve than give them such rights. This is what you are dealing with when you are dealing with Israel. Not democracy, not justice or anything civilised but sheer fascism. There is no other word for it. After all, the world now knows this to be the case, Israel has long lost the propaganda war. That's why only 8 Palestinians got one of the hugest applauds of the night at the opening ceremony of the Olympics a few days ago, much louder than the Zionist state got. At the end of the day Israel with all it's might and money from the likes of M&S is despised by the people of the world. What is there to respect about Israel after all? Apartheid? Occupation? House demolitions? Ethnic cleansing? Israel is alone - supported only by a handful of corrupt and brutal states such as the US and Britain, states themselves facing bankruptcy. We must further the isolation of Israel, boycott Israeli goods and build the M&S pickets here further. We must protect the right to protest, protect the rights of Palestinians here and in Palestine. The victory for Chavez and the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela this week has demonstrated that it is possible to organise and build a more democratic world. We must further what the Venezuelan people are doing here in the UK. The best way to do that is by building a solidarity movement for those such as the Palestinians and Iraqis, those at the forefront of figthting racism and imperialism.

Boycott Marks and Spencer!
Boycott Israeli apartheid!

Picket Marks and Spencer Oxford St (Marble Arch end) next and every Thursday, 6 till 8pm.