Cambridge Labour City Councillors have sent a public letter to the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, to reiterate the Councillors’ previous call for a ceasefire in Israel-Palestine. The letter was sent to Rishi Sunak on 15th January 2024.

Read the full letter below:

Dear Prime Minister,

As a Labour Group we are proud to have run the City Council for nearly 10 years. It is an honour and privilege to have been entrusted with this responsibility by the residents of this wonderful city.

This responsibility brings with it certain obligations to act on behalf of our residents. As a result, and at the request of the Cambridge City Council Labour Group, I am writing to you to stress our Councillors’ position on the Israel Palestine Conflict and urge you to call for an immediate ceasefire.

At the beginning of November, we released a statement in which we condemned the killing of innocent civilians in both Israel and Palestine, the capture and holding of hostages, the siege of Gaza and the attacks by settlers in the West Bank.

As a result of the strength of feeling felt by our residents we also called for an ‘an immediate ceasefire and the delivery of humanitarian aid to prevent any further loss of life and ensure that the human rights of all Palestinians and Israelis are protected.’

Councillors were pleased to see a short pause in the conflict at the end of November, enabling the exchange of captives and prisoners and the delivery of humanitarian to aid to civilians in Gaza. However, we are shocked and saddened that the violence has resumed, be it the missile attacks on Israel or the bombardment of Gaza, where the reported death toll now reaching over 22,000, two-thirds of whom are women and children. It is clear that the increasingly protracted conflict is leading to further loss on all sides and with the potential to spread to the wider region, as seen by recent hostilities in Lebanon and Yemen.

I am therefore writing to reassert our position and call on the Government to act immediately and call for an end to this terrible violence and loss of life. We urge you, as our Prime Minister, to back the United Nations’ demand for a ceasefire. In addition, we ask you to work with your Ministers to find a pathway to peace and the development of a political solution to ensure the safety of civilians in both Palestine and Israel.

Cambridge City Council will continue to stand in solidarity with all of those affected by this terrible conflict and work hard to make Cambridge a city free of Anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and hatred of any kind.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you,

Cllr Mike Davey, Leader Cambridge City Council, on behalf of Cambridge Labour City Councillors

Read our letter to Sir Keir Starmer here.