[Salon] Petition seeking reparations from HMG for historic crimes in Palestine



FM: John Whitbeck

On the day on which the British government has promised to finally recognize the State of Palestine, transmitted below is a message from my friend and distinguished recipient Victor Kattan on a significant initiative to inspire the British government to acknowledge its historical and moral responsibility for the conception and perpetuation of the Palestinian tragedy.


On 9/21/2025 Victor Kattan wrote:
Dear friends,

September has been an eventful month for all sorts of reasons, and it is still not over. While the UK's announcement that it will recognise a Palestinian state is a welcome and long overdue development, Britain owes Palestine far more than recognition. It owes the people of Palestine an apology for its historic crimes in Palestine when it was the colonial power as well as reparations.

In this connection, I was honoured to have been chosen to deliver a 433-page petition, alongside Palestinian industrialist Munib al-Masri, 91 years old, and Oxford University Professor Avi Shlaim,  straight to 10 Downing Street requesting reparations from the UK for violations of international law in mandatory Palestine, where the UK was the colonial power from 1917-1948. The petition was sent to HMG on behalf of 14 elderly Palestinians (including Mr al-Masri).  

You can read an account of that moving and solemn visit in The Irish Times at this link (no paywall): https://www.irishtimes.com/world/uk/2025/09/15/palestinian-generations-unite-to-tell-downing-street-current-conflict-was-made-in-britain/   I especially liked this bit from the story: "Kattan rapped twice on the heavy knocker on the prime minister’s front door. The loud thud reverberated up the otherwise silent street, as the petitioners announced their arrival to ask for what they see as justice."

I would not be surprised if you missed the news as a lot has been going on -- on the day before we delivered the petition, Israel bombed Palestinian negotiators in Doha, and on the day we visited Downing Street, Sir Keir Starmer met with Isaac Herzog, Israel's President, for what turned out to be a stormy meeting.

Nonetheless, The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Mirror, and the Daily Express covered the story of our petition:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/07/palestinians-petition-uk-legal-violations-last-century

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/britain-palestine-palestinian-uk-government-jewish-b2824024.html

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/palestinians-mount-legal-bid-against-35864900

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/2105576/palestinians-to-demand-apology-uk-government

A notable omission was the BBC, although it did cover some of the issues raised in the petition in this story from 2022: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-63145992

The story was well covered in the Arabic press including Arab News, Middle East Eye etc.

The petition

The petition is an important document. It has been several years in the making  and work on it predates the war in Gaza. The authors of the petition include barristers Ben Emmerson KC, Danny Friedman KC, Professor John Quigley, Professor Avi Shlaim, and myself.

You can read the petition here: https://www.britainowespalestine.org/the-legal-petition

You can find out more on the campaign website here: https://www.britainowespalestine.org/ 

If anything, we hope the petition will provoke a national conversation about the UK's colonial past in Palestine -- something that is notably missing from many British school curriculums. I promise you there is something new for everyone to learn from reading the petition, even for those who are experts on the topic. 

Please do help spread the word about the petition amongst your networks, and as always, I welcome feedback!

Warmly,

Victor 

--
 
Dr. Victor Kattan, LL.M. (Leiden University), Ph.D. (School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London)


Assistant Professor, School of Law:

https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/law/people/victor.kattan


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