Hastings and District Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Newsletter   6 June 2025
  In this newsletter:
  • This Saturday 12noon - 2pm - Hastings information stall
  • Tuesday 17 June - Protest at BAE Systems Rochester
  • Thursday 19 June - Meeting: Eye Witness to Genocide - Latest from the West Bank
  • 9-12 July - Oh Big Blue - an exhibition of poetry and art by Palestinian children
  • Thursday 10 July - The Encampments: Film Screening and Q&A Fundraiser for Al Mawasi

    SATURDAY'S INFORMATION STALL

    Saturday 7 June 12.00 noon until 2pm Town Centre. Our weekly stall will be running as usual (weather permitting). All the usual information, petitions, plus keffiyehs, books, badges, boycott and General Dynamics stickers and Palestine Cola.

    EYE WITNESS TO GENOCIDE - LATEST FROM THE WEST BANK

    Thursday 19 June 7 pm. White Rock Hotel, Hastings TN34 1JU.
    Speaker: Amjad Rfaie from the Askar refugee camp in Nablus



    Israel's attacks have intensified in the West Bank over the last 18 months, leaving the refugee camps at Jenin and Tulkarem destroyed. Israel has killed almost 1,000 Palestinians (including at least 181 children). It has increased its demolitions of Palestinian infrastructure. And now the apartheid state has just approved the establishment of 22 new settlements throughout the West Bank.

    We are pleased to host this meeting with Amjad Rfaie from the Askar refugee camp in Nablus. Amjad is the President of the Askar Association for Community Development and Advancement. He is a prominent figure in Palestinian advocacy and has played a key role in strengthening international solidarity with the Palestinian cause through various initiatives and cultural exchange programs. He has spent five years as a political prisoner in Israeli jails.

    The people in the Askar camp have suffered an increasing number of raids by the Occupation Forces. The photo above was taken 21 May this year from inside the camp.

    REFUGEE WEEK 2025

    As the meeting falls during UK Refugee Week, we're pleased to start the evening with a talk by Jane from Hastings Community of Sanctuary/Hastings Supports Refugees.

    ARMS EMBARGO NOW!
    PROTEST AT BAE SYSTEMS ROCHESTER

    Tuesday 17 June 11am. BAE Systems Marconi Way, Rochester, Kent, ME1 2XX

    Britain is an active participant in Israel's genocide in Palestine, including through its arms trade and military collaboration with Israel. One example is Britain's contribution to Israel's F-35 fighter jets, used to drop 2,000lb bombs on the Gaza Strip.

    Crucial components for F-35 fighter jets used by Israel to bomb Gaza are manufactured at dozens of sites in Britain. At least 15% of the value of each of Israel's F-35 fighter jet is produced in the UK.

    Tuesday 17 June is a day of action at Havant, Rochester and Sheffield at BAE Systems sites involved in the F-35 fighter jet supply chain. The Rochester site produces the Active Interceptor System used by the F-35 pilot to control the fighter jet.

    We hope to organise a system of car sharing. So we can coordinate this please join our WhatsApp group by emailing us.    More information.

    OH BIG BLUE - AN EXHIBITION OF POETRY AND ART BY PALESTINIAN CHILDREN

    10am-4pm 9-12 July, Stade Hall


    Make room in your calendar for the new exhibition coming to Hastings from The Hands Up Project - Oh Big Blue! This incredible collection of illustrated poems comes directly from the hearts and minds of Palestinian children growing up in a time of genocide and apartheid.

    Written last year by children ages 9-17 from all over Palestine including Ramallah, Jenin, Hebron, Nablus, Jerusalem and Gaza, the works stand as a testament to courage, hope, resilience, and love. The free exhibition will be open daily 10am-4pm from 9th-12th July inclusive. Facebook event page. Launch night details coming soon!

    THE ENCAMPMENTS: FILM SCREENING AND Q&A FUNDRAISER FOR AL MAWASI

    6:30pm Thursday 10 July, Stade Hall


    Don't miss the chance to see the Hastings premiere of THE ENCAMPMENTS, the powerful new documentary following the Palestine solidarity protests that erupted across university campuses in 2024. Timely, urgent and filled with a clear-eyed fury, THE ENCAMPMENTS is a rallying cry for those who refuse to be silenced and a message of hope for the people of Palestine.

    The screening will be followed by a discussion with UK student encampment organisers and is taking place in Stade Hall, where visitors can also view the Oh Big Blue exhibition of poetry and art by Palestinian children. It is a fundraiser for Al Mawasi with tickets priced £10/£8 concessions. More details at the FB event page.

    Book tickets here

    PALESTINE - ISRAEL: FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

    Much of the 'information' in the corporate media is misleading. Here are some useful sources:
    Middle East Eye.    Electronic Intifada.    Al Jazeera.    Middle East Monitor.
    Mondoweiss.    Palestine Chronicle.    Al Mayadeen.    Mintpress.    The Grayzone.
    The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor.       Jonathan Cook.
    The Cradle.       MediaLens.       Declassified UK.       The Hind Rajab Foundation.
    Rania Khalek.
    .......................................

    Hastings and District PSC online membership and donations

    Becoming a member of Hastings and District PSC is an important way of supporting our work.The annual subscription is £10 waged, £5 unwaged. We now have an online membership payment form. It can also be used to renew membership. If you would rather not use Paypal, you can pay directly to our bank: please contact us for the details. Or alternatively pay at one of our events.

    The work of Hastings and District PSC could not continue without the donations from members of the public. If you would like to support our work without becoming a member please visit our shop page here and see the right hand column:
    Donate to Hastings and District PSC.
    ........................................

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