At 6pm last Friday a vigil was held on the steps of Stroud Subscription Rooms to remember the short life – and death – of a young Palestinian girl, Hind Rajab whose killing in a hail of machine gun fire from a nearby Israeli tank in 2024 prompted a global outcry, including the renaming of student buildings on campuses across the United States.
Robin Layfield, representing Stroud District Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, spoke about her death and how Hind was one of tens of thousands of young children that have been and killed or maimed by Israeli forces over the last 16 months: “Today we remember Hind Rajab. Today we remember that all children are innocent, and they are not legitimate enemy combatants, nor are they terrorists.
“Today we remember that the killing of civilians is always a War Crime. Today we remember that the United Kingdom is complicit in all of this unless and until our Government ends the sale of arms and the provision of replacement F-35 parts to Israel.
“Write to your MP. Demand the end of arms sales. Remember Hind Rajab”
The vigil is maintained by Stroud Ceasefire Now Coalition and has gathered every week since October 2023 to bear witness to the ongoing war in Israel-Palestine.
The vigil continues to gather at the Subscription Rooms at 6pm every Friday in the hope that it there will now be a permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the beginning of a meaningful dialogue towards peace, a suspension of weapons sales to Israel and an end to the illegal occupation of Palestine since 1967.
The Stroud Ceasefire Now Coalition is comprised of the following groups: Na’amod Gloucestershire; Nailsworth Quakers; Community Solidarity Stroud District; Stroud Friends of Palestine; Stroud District Palestine Solidarity Campaign; Parents for Future Stroud; Stroud Against Racism; Stroud Together with Refugees; The RYSE; Stroud Quakers.
Video by Alex Parnham-Cope
