Holocaust survivors and their descendants have criticised the UK prime minister Keir Starmer for his linking of recent attacks on Jews to pro-Palestine demonstrations and marches. In an open letter to the PM, copied to the home secretary and the commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, they deplore instrumentalisation of Jewish safety in order to further repress freedom of speech, protest and assembly.
Their letter calls on the prime minister to promote Jewish safety constructively by publicly acknowledging that Israel is not acting on behalf of all Jews and that its crimes are condemned by many Jewish people in Britain and around the world.
The Left Lane is reprinting the text of the letter to the PM together with its signatories in full below to assist in achieving the widest possible dissemination of this important message.
Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer MP
Prime Minister
10 Downing Street
London SW1A 2AA
(By email) 12 May 2026
Copy (by email) to:
Rt Hon Shabana Mahmood MP, Secretary of State for the Home Department.
Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis.
Dear Prime Minister,
We are writing to you as Jewish survivors and descendants of survivors of the Holocaust.
We have noted that you have expressed support for the banning of pro-Palestine marches and protests following the recent attacks on Jewish people and property. Your statements have given the impression that you agree with those who call these marches “hate marches” and who claim that they are a source of antisemitism and an incitement to violence against Jews.
The Home Secretary and the Metropolitan Police Commissioner have made similar statements and we are copying this letter to them.
While we condemn the attacks that have taken place against Jewish people and property, we reject the notion that these attacks result from demonstrations in support of the Palestinian people and in protest against the crimes of the Israeli government and its armed forces.
We and numerous other Holocaust survivor descendants have participated in almost every one of the national marches for Palestine. We have stood under the banner “Holocaust Survivor Descendants against Gaza Genocide” and we have individually worn placards that clearly identified us as Holocaust survivors or descendants of survivors.
Never once have we experienced the slightest hostility from the hundreds of thousands of demonstrators who have marched past us. On the contrary, just like the thousand or more Jews who march as part of the Jewish Bloc, we have been shown nothing but solidarity and even poignant displays of affection.
The only hostility we have experienced has been from the small but over-amplified pro-Israel counter-demonstrations, whose participants have clearly resented our presence. Yet their offensive and even racist language has largely been without consequence.
We therefore strongly oppose any attempt to instrumentalise the attacks on Jewish people in order to further restrict the right to protest, in particular in relation to Palestine. Not only would this be a further assault on all our freedoms, but it could also lead to resentment against Jews if it appears that this repression is happening because of a disingenuous and opportunistic exploitation of concerns for Jewish safety and prioritising this over the safety of other groups who also suffer violent attacks.
The Jewish community is not one homogeneous bloc. Many Jews, including those in our group, condemn Israel’s crimes in Gaza and elsewhere. We resent that you should even consider preventing us from expressing that condemnation, even as Jews and as Holocaust survivors and descendants of Holocaust survivors.
There is a real danger that the anger caused by Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people and others in the region leads in some cases to wholly inexcusable attacks on Jewish people in the UK. If you genuinely wish to reduce the danger of this occurring, then further restricting the right to protest against these crimes is not the answer. Instead, we urge you to publicly acknowledge that Israel is not acting on behalf of all Jews and that its crimes are condemned by many Jewish people in Britain and around the world.
Yours sincerely,
Holocaust Survivors
Doctor Agnes Kory, Child survivor of the Holocaust in Hungary.
Stephen Kapos, Child survivor of the Holocaust in Hungary.
Descendants of Holocaust Survivors
Mark Etkind, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Carolyn Gelenter, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Professor Emerita Miriam David, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany and Hungary.
Ann Jungmann, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany.
Daniel Vulliamy, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Professor Emeritus Richard Wistreich, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Rachel Richardson, Granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Professor Emeritus Robert Reiner, Son of Holocaust survivors from Hungary.
Erica Levy, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Miranda Pinch, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia.
Professor Yosefa Loshitzky, Daughter of survivors of the Holocaust in Poland.
A M Poppy, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from the Netherlands.
Colonel (Retd) Christopher Romberg, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Peter Frankental, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Charlotte Reynolds, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Sylvia Finzi, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Italy and Germany.
Professor William Schabas, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Elizabeth Morley, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Hungary.
Sonja Linden, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Vicky Moller, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia.
Talora Leigh, Great-granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Tony Whiteson, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Karel Michael Schling, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia.
Eva Turner, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia.
Perdita Heller, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Professor Anne Karpf, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Poland.
Helen Martins, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany.
Anthony Gimpel, Son of Holocaust survivors from Germany and Austria.
Oliver Rakocevic, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Mike Brecher, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Andrew Feinstein, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Amanda Sebestyen, Granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor from Hungary.
Glenn Bassett, Grandson of Holocaust survivors from Austria.
Peter Perrett, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Caroline Hearst, Daughter of Holocaust survivors from Germany.
Peter Hall, Son of Holocaust survivors from Austria.
Doctor Mark Smith, Son of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Charlotte Monro, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Czechoslovakia.
Helen Marks, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Poland.
Angie Eden, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Austria.
Doctor Diana Warner, Daughter of a Holocaust survivor from Germany.
Lola Karpf, Granddaughter of Holocaust survivors from Poland.
