PSC condemns the disgraceful announcement that nearly two years into Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, Israeli President Isaac Herzog will visit Britain next week.  

Herzog is the head of a state that is currently on trial for genocide and which has already been found guilty of the crime of apartheid at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In January 2024, the ICJ cited statements made by Herzog personally – that sought to dehumanise Palestinians and called for their collective punishment – as plausible evidence of Israel’s genocidal intent towards the Palestinian people. Herzog’s statements include the claims that there ‘are no innocent civilians in Gaza’ and that it is the ‘entire [Palestinian] nation out there that is responsible’ combined with his promise to ‘fight until we break their backbone.’ Sickeningly, he was pictured writing messages on bombs in preparation to be dropped on Gaza.  

As a state party to the Genocide Convention, Britain has a responsibility to prevent and punish genocide including by bringing to justice those responsible for incitement to commit genocide. Faced with the overwhelming evidence and international legal, human rights and academic consensus regarding Israel’s barbaric genocide in Gaza, no Israeli government official should be welcomed to Britain, and no British minister should be meeting with them under any pretext. The Home Secretary must act now to ensure that Isaac Herzog is not permitted to enter the country next week. 

It is particularly grotesque that this announcement came on the very day that the United States imposed draconian sanctions on leading Palestinian human rights organisations Al-Haq, Al-Mezan, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights to punish them for their human rights work, and particularly in relation to the International Criminal Court (ICC). The British government, and the entire international community, should be facilitating Palestinian victims of genocide to give evidence of Israel’s crimes against them, rather than welcoming the criminal perpetrators for visits. 

If this visit goes ahead, Herzog must be subject to robust action and investigation by the police. We will ensure that he is met with enormous protest. Join us on the streets of London on Thursday 11 September to show that Israel’s genocidal president is not welcome here. Further details to be announced.