German speaks at Gaza rally in Newport

12.00.00am GMT Sat 17th Jan 2009

Mike German addresses the Gaza rally in Newport

A rally organised by the Young Muslim Organisation to promote awareness of the problems in Gaza was addressed by politicians including Michael German, the Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member for South Wales East.

On the march

In his speech Mr German expressed what a privilege it was to be there and to share the outcry of public concern about the grief brought upon the residents of Gaza. He went on to say that we need to recognise the trauma of so many children and humanitarian aid should be delivered through the UK working closely with the EU and the UN.

He welcomed the cease fire, which he said had to happen before Obama was elected, showing that the Bush administration was unable to broker anything useful.

Listening to the speeches

"UK arms sales to Israel should be halted pending a peaceful resolution of the underlying issues. The government's own figures show Britain is selling more and more weapons to Israel, despite the questions about the country's use of force. In 2007, our government approved £6m of arms exports. In 2008, it licensed sales 12 times as fast: £20m in the first three months alone.Brown must also halt Britain's arms exports to Israel, and persuade our EU counterparts to do the same. "