The Jewish Bloc on a National March for Palestine June 2024
The Brent Jewish Network has written to the the leader of Brent Council requesting a meeting so that they can discuss their support for the twinning arrangement with the city of Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
The move comes after Cllr Butt promised consultation with the Jewish community about the issue after presentation of a petition opposing the twinning at Full Council last Monday.
The Brent Jewish Network was initially a loose grouping formed in late 2023 as a consequence of the development of a Jewish bloc at pro-Palestine demonstrations. Latterly it has adopted a more formal structure.
The list of signatories has grown since the letter was sent last week:
Cllr Muhammed Butt
c/o Labour Group Office Brent Civic Centre Engineers Way Wembley
HA9 0FJ
11 July 2025
Dear Cllr Butt,
We would like to congratulate you and Brent councillors for successfully passing the motion to begin the process of twinning Brent with the Palestinian city of Nablus. We want to pay our appreciation for the many hours of work undertaken by yourselves and the Brent Nablus Twinning Association to reach this point. Twinning with Nablus is a deeply meaningful act of solidarity with the long-suffering Palestinian people and an exciting opportunity for our communities in Brent to develop fraternal links with the city of Nablus.
We are a diverse group of Jewish people in Brent who care deeply about our home borough, our neighbour communities and the global struggle for a fairer, peaceful world. We include synagogue members, secular Jews, young people and elders - yet we speak with one voice in wholehearted support for twinning with Nablus.
Following comments made at the full council meeting on Monday, in particular your intention to consult with the local Jewish community on this matter, we are formally requesting a meeting with yourself to share our views as Jewish residents and community members of Brent. We strongly believe that the majority of Jewish residents support (or at least, do not oppose) the twinning proposal.
Exclusive consultation with just one part of our community is counter-productive, reductive and divisive. We firmly reject both the ludicrous claim that twinning with Nablus is “sectarianism” as well as the false presentation of this view as the sole voice of the Jewish community.
Additionally, those of us who have previously visited Nablus seek the opportunity to share these experiences with the council cabinet.
Please respond with your availability for an in-person meeting in the coming days and we will make the relevant arrangements.
With much gratitude,
Daniel Wernberg
Ben Samuel
Rabbi Dr Frank Dabba Smith
Dr Jonathan Fluxman
Carol Foster
Dr Ian Saville
Pamela Laurance
Lucy Cox
Tessa Van Gelderen
Tom Goodman
Juliet Sampson
Emma Tait
Ilana Machover
19 comments:
Let no one claim that standing up for the human rights of people in the West Bank and Gaza, or criticising the unlawful acts of the current Israeli government and their Defence Force, is anti-Semitism.
It is encouraging to read about members from the Jewish part of Brent's wonderfully diverse community making clear that the person presenting the anti-twinning petition at last week's Council meeting was not speaking for them.
This is really positive!
wonderful news
This is wonderful to hear.
Great to hear, delighted that members of our wonderful Jewish Brent community are speaking out!
The truth is that a delegation of Jewish community leaders met with Brent Council Leader Muhammed Butt on Wednesday 9 July 2025. The meeting has been reported by the press.and on the web. Anyone is free to read it.
Where do most of them live? Not Brent
I know most of the signatories personally and yes, they do live in Brent. They have bravely given their names so you can check. You, in contrast have not had the courage to give your name and you may live in Biggleswade for all we know :-)
The delegation of Jewish community leaders who met with Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt on Wednesday 9 July 2025 ( 2 days before the letter that you published on Wembley Matters) included representatives, each of whom live in Brent, from 6 synagogues in Brent. That delegation is supported by the vast majority of Jewish people who live in Brent.
Climate visas are offered now by Australia to Tuvalu which is sinking under rising sea levels. How about Occupation visas for the occupied sinking under rising settler levels?
The human alternative of course is to address the issues and to change course. History has many wars and history has had many peace's.
Comment received by email from Myles Hickey: "Well said Martin. Jews in Brent who are willing to publicly identify their support for Palestinians in the West Bank deserve to be heard and respected. The idea that these views are less weighty than the appalling stance of the Board of Deputies or the Chief Rabbi on the issues of ethnic cleansing by Israeli settlers of Palestinians in West Bank communities under the protection of the Israeli Defence Force is absurd. Kudos to the Brent Jewish Network."
Where are the voices of moderate Muslims in Brent on the consequences to community cohesion by twinning with Nablus? it is only by peaceful dialogue between all ethnic, religious and LGBT+ groups in Brent can community cohesion be sustained. How can the twinning of Brent with Nablus without prior consultation with the diverse groups in Brent advance community cohesion?
This is wonderful news. Good people from all walks of life united in humanity, bravery and decency.
Who are you to say the vast majority of Jews? More and more of us are disgusted with the genocide in Palestine, and the slavish support of "our representatives" for the murderous Israeli government and IDF.
The vast majority of people in this country, from every community are appalled by what the Israeli government and military are doing to the Palestinian people. Expressions of solidarity, like twinning with Nablus reaffirm that community cohesion in Brent, and that we are all human. Those opposing it are a tiny minority and cause division in our communities, by supporting an ethnonationalist supremacist state committing genocide.
Solidarity with my Jewish brothers and sisters supporting the Brent Council twinning with the Palestinian town of Nablus!
There are some very encouraging comments under this blog article, but it is sad that most people making them have done so anonymously.
Do you fear the consequences, from your own religious persuasion, political party or organisation, or a different one?
If you share your honestly held views, in a respectful way, you should not need to feel afraid.
If we are living in a society where you can't do that, then we all need to speak out, and try to change things for the better.
The in 2025 newly occupied Syrian land (including several towns) takes settler culture into Syria to within 25 kilometres of Damascus. Yet more overkill is inevitable to hold this further settler expansion.
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