On 2 May, Dr. Makram Khoury-Machool* addressed a lunchtime fringe event at Britain Yearly Meeting 2026 hosted by Quaker Palestine Solidarity (QPS), bringing a deeply personal and academic perspective to the crisis. A British Palestinian Christian academic born in Jaffa, he framed the issue not as religious conflict, but as a fundamental question of morality and justice.
He shared his story: educated in Hebrew at Israeli universities, a former journalist who reported the First Intifada in 1987, and has lived in Palestinian and Israeli Jewish societies for decades. This history compels him to speak against the crimes being committed. “I cannot recognise this society anymore,” he said, describing an Israeli public opinion he views as profoundly manipulated and militarised.
Dr. Khoury-Machool structured his talk around the political categories created in historic Palestine, from the Nakba of 1948 to the current reality of occupation and what he characterised as CleansOcide (Ethnic Cleansing + Genocide). He expressed deep skepticism about the feasibility of a two-state solution given the Israeli settlements, suggesting that a single, secular democratic state might be the only just long-term path, though fraught with difficulty.
The discussion then turned to practical action and challenges we face in the UK. Attendees raised the weaponisation of accusations of antisemitism to shut down debate, and the fear felt by UK Jewish communities. Dr. Khoury-Machool condemned all hate crimes and urged a critique of the moral positions taken by some British Jewish leadership regarding Israel’s crimes against Palestinians and others in the region, particularly Lebanon. He emphasised that criticising a state’s actions is distinct from prejudice against a people.
Laura from QPS shared a statement from Grace Da Costa, Quakers Public Affairs Manager, on the threats to protest rights in the UK; and she outlined QPS’ role: maintaining a presence at national marches, supporting local action, and defending the right to protest under increasingly restrictive laws. She highlighted that witnessing for peace is a core part of Quaker faith.
The meeting closed with a call for Quakers to continue bearing witness in local meetings, engaging with diverse voices and upholding our Quaker testimony on Palestine. Specifically:
The message was clear: in one of Britain’s “darkest hours,” silence is not an option, and solidarity must be rooted in unwavering commitment to justice and human rights.
*Dr Khoury-Machool is founding Director of the Cambridge Centre for Palestinian Studies. The video of the event is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JMy_PzDteQ
