BBC sacks Gary Lineker for speaking out on Gaza. UK Government says situation in Gaza ‘intolerable’
There have been regular London demonstrations for Palestine and Gaza and against what has become an Israeli genocide since October 2023. They have been regular not weekly and there has been very little in the way of issues. The Met Police reported 7 arrests on 16th May, one for someone attacking a marcher, and six for what appeared to be, at best, minor infractions of the very restrictive conditions the Met imposes on these occasions.
Of course the right-wing media (which is most of it) and many (but not all) politicians hate the idea of marching for Gaza and vary between ignoring a march and condemning it and trying to get it banned.
In fact the BBC completely ignored it (they have reported at least some previous marches) as did most other print media, aside of course from Socialist Worker and the Morning Star.
The BBC in effect sacked Gary Lineker because he ‘would not keep quiet’ on Gaza, keeping quiet being something the BBC has no problem with.
The 17th May demonstration marked the 77th anniversary of the 1948 Nakba, Israel’s first attempt to force Palestinians out of their own land and homes. A second Nakba is clearly underway. The marches in London have a particular importance because after the First World War Britain had the mandate for Palestine.
The fact that the marches continue, and May 16th was one of the biggest, reflect serious grassroots opinion and organisation across the country. They call out Israel’s genocidal actions but they are changing the face of British politics and will continue to do so, from below.
In fact the changes are happening more quickly than the BBC Director General may have anticipated.
On Monday the UK, French and Canadian Governments issued a robust statement saying Israel’s actions in Gaza must stop and if they did not ‘concrete action’ would follow. No doubt the 500,000 plus on the streets of central London two days before helped. In reality however Netanyahu and the far right and fascist rabble regime he heads has gone too far at the moment for Western sensibilities.
History is being made on the streets but as Gil Scott-Heron sang the revolution will not be televised and as Michael Rosen wrote recently the genocide and protests against it won’t be televised in any sustained way either. Thanks to social media enough of it is currently being seen though to underline that the BBC was wrong and Lineker was right
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