The Palestinian Return Centre, part of the Hamas support network in the U.K., has announced a global campaign to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. According to the PRC announcement:
Ever since the UK Foreign Secretary, Arthur James Balfour, pronounced the Balfour Declaration, on 2nd November 1917, promising a homeland for the Jews in Palestine, Palestinians have endured ongoing violation of their basic human rights. With only 67 words, seismic changes were forced on the Palestinians, making contradictory, irreconcilable and ambiguous promises; One nation promised another nation the land of a third nation. By promising 6% of Jews, what was clearly their own state; it totally compromised the rights of the other 94%. It referred to the majority population as “the non-Jewish community in Palestine” and contradicted the 1916 Mcmahon-Hussain Agreement and the principals of national self determination. In Palestine, Britain did not propose even to go through the form of consulting the wishes of the inhabitants of the country about the future of their country. Now, over 11 million Palestinians continue to suffer from Britain’s colonial legacy in Palestine. Not only is it time for Britain to apologize for the human rights abuse suffered by Palestinians while under British Mandate (Administration), there needs to be an admission of this original sin which bought untold misery through nearly a century of conflict, ethnic cleansing, ongoing human rights abuse, brutal occupation and apartheid. The Palestinian Return Centre (PRC), with other partners around the world, is preparing to launch their global campaign to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. The five year campaign, which will be launched during Palestine memorial week in January 2013, will include mass mobilization, popular events, conferences and workshops, lobbying, petition and many other initiatives. The campaign, launched in the UK, will gather a million signatures from those seeking justice in Palestine, in condemnation of British colonial policy between 1917-1948. Millions of Palestinians continue to suffer from the unjust and misguided British policy in Palestine. Great injustice leaves great scars, it is time Britain apologised to rebuild for the future.
A post from May reported on a new “broad campaign in solidarity with the prisoners in occupation jails” launched at the latest Palestinians in Europe conference held in Denmark.
The Palestine Return Center (PRC), a co-sponsor of the Palestinians in Europe conferences, has strong ties to the global Muslim Brotherhood. Two PRC directors are also directors of the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB), generally regarded as part of the UK. Muslim Brotherhood. The PRC is also listed as an affiliate of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) which frequently acts in concert with U.K. Muslim Brotherhood groups and PRC activities are frequently promoted by the MAB, MCB, and other U.K. Brotherhood organizations. PRC director Ghassan Four is also a Trustee of INTERPAL, a key member of the Union of Good and part of the Muslim Brotherhood Hamas fund-raising network . PRC director Zaher Birawi is a Trustee of Education Aid for Palestine (EAP), also a part of the Union of Good. Mr. Birawi is also head of programming for Al-Hiwar TV which frequently features MB/Hamas individuals and organizations and was founded by Azzam Al-Tamimi, a U.K Muslim Brotherhood leader and close to Hamas. An Israeli web site, known to be close to Israeli military intelligence, has reported that Mr. Birawi, along with another PRC Trustee are “past Hamas operatives who found refuge in Britain in the early nineties.” The executive director of the PRC is Arafat Madi (aka Arafat Madi Shoukri) who is also the chairman of the European Campaign to End the Siege of Gaza (ECESG), one of the main sponsors of the Gaza flotilla movement.