We dream of a Free Palestine State: William Dalrymple

77 years ago,
In 1948, Nakba, during the catastrophe,
750,000 Palestinians were displaced,
They were terrorized, raped and brutalized!

They were out of their homes, farms and villages,
They were ousted in the Galilee,
Tiberias, Beit She'an, and Safed
And the Great Palestine ports of Jaffa and Acre!

Palestinians were driven out with Napalm, machine guns, and Machetes.
They were forced to flee from their Olive trees
To the barren sand dunes of Gaza,
They now sleep under the rubble!  

At the end of 1948,
Only 15 percent of the Palestinians remained
In the same place they had lived before.
85 percent were ethnically cleansed!

Despite the promises of Lord Balfour
"Nothing shall be done which may prejudice
The civil and religious rights
of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine!

The Nakba happened,
Britain helped the Nakba with the Balfour Declaration,
They helped Israel
With 30 years of colonization in Palestine!

During the colonization, indigenous inhabitants,
The Palestinians were disarmed,
The Palestinian leaders were arrested,
Sent to prison camps outside the country!

Britain has a historic responsibility to the Palestinians
Compared to any other country,
To establish Palestine as a country
And provide more protection for their safety and security!

The unsafe, brutal environment in Palestine
It was created by British politicians one century ago.
They believed the Palestinians are expendable
And their life are unimportant!

The shameful history of the Nakba in 1948
And genocide in Gaza 2024-2025
Will galvanize British politics
Over their past failures, if they play their role correctly now!

Children and politicians in England
Are often unaware of the history of Palestine,
As it was not taught in school
Through the history curriculum!

Even the BBC failed
To tell the story of the Palestinians suffering
Via the News Bulletins
And show them on TV Screens!

The British people were not taught the dark history of Israel,
And their responsibility for this mess in the Palestinians' lives,
After watching the Genocide in Gaza,
Britain is still supporting and covering Israel and the US!

Britain is covering Netanyahu's extremist military administration
And its coalition government officials,
This makes it clear Britain's indifference
And its intention for Palestine!

Smotrich, the Finance Minister of Israel, said
Gaza will be destroyed entirely,
And a significant number of the population
Will move to third countries. He said it publicly!

Yet, the British government did nothing,
This announcement is visible, a complete war crime,

British taxpayers' money is used to send the RAF,
To assist in the genocide in Gaza!
British-gathered intelligence,
Enable the murder of children and women
With aircraft manufactured in Britain,
Those aircraft were provided to the IDF at no cost!

Shamefully, more weapons were provided to the IDF
During the Starmer government, rather than the Tories!
At this moment, half a million Palestinians are starving,
But they are brutally killed at the food distribution sites every day!

And one million lack food,
Israel's blockade of food for months and months
Created famine in Gaza,
Israel is using starvation as a tool of extermination of Palestinians!

The US and Israel's food distribution sites
Has been used as a weapon to kill the rest of the Palestinians,
You cannot hide the truth
Of slaughtering children, women and men in Gaza!

While children are asleep in the tent,
Walking to fetch water,
Standing in a queue in a clinic,
Playing outside, seeking food in the food aid camp!

Children were killed brutally,
By direct shooting and using missiles and drones on them,
Possibly more than 100,000 have been killed,
As the Lancet study says!

The Gaza genocide is a moral catastrophe in modern times,
For the West, the genocide in Gaza is a black mark in its moral history,
Allowing Israel to kill Palestinians mercilessly,
The biggest failure after the Second World War!

You cannot wipe them to make your slate clean,
You may all be wiped out again
If you deny peaceful co-existence
Or fail to give others equal respect and rights!

There is a darkness all around,
Every day we wake up and watch children
And civilians in Gaza for no reason,
This Dahiya doctrine, killing everyone as a collective punishment!

Israel experienced collective punishment during the Holocaust,
They could have lessons to heighten their morality,
The lessons learned from their past few centuries,
When they were in exile or homeless!

Regrettably, they did not,
Slaughtering Palestinians must be stopped,

And the darkness must end,
This is not a fantasy or a dream!  
In this darkness, we have to find the lights
To get out of the tunnel
For the sake of peace and humanity,
And save Palestinians, including Israelis!

We dream of justice, dignity,
Decency and human rights,
We dream of a world where Palestinian children are not burnt alive,
We dream of a world where they are not driven like donkeys!

From North to South and South to North
And end up in the Rafah Concentration Camp prison,
To die,
If the genocide continues, it can be a Boomerang for the Israelis!

They could end up homeless and imprisoned,  
Butchered the same way,  
What they are doing to Palestinians,
Nature takes its own course!

And it never does injustice to the oppressed,
We dream of a Palestinian state,
Where Palestinians can live peacefully and grow Olives again,
We dream of Free Palestine!

William Dalrymple Addressed, Piccadilly, London, May 30, 2025
Best-selling writer and historian William Dalrymple spoke about Gaza and
Palestine, as well as Britain's historical responsibility for the situation there. His
speech introduced 'A Golden String: William Blake in Words and Music', a
fundraising event for Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) at St James' Church,
Piccadilly, London, on May 30, 2025.
An ICN transcript of the full text slightly edited by Dr Pamelia Riviere to create
an Epistle version.