UK approves Palestine Expo despite pro-Israel lobby opposition

A UK government department says it is 'content' for Palestine Expo to go ahead on 8 July despite pro-Israel lobbyists attempting to have the fair cancelled.

MENA

1 min read

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28 June, 2017

Pro-Israel groups alleged that the event's organisers had links to Hamas [Screenshot]

Europe's biggest-ever Palestine event has received the go-ahead by the British government, despite attempts by the UK's pro-Israel lobby to have it cancelled.

Organisers of Palestine Expo received the confirmation from the Department for Communities and Local Government [DCLG] on Tuesday morning.

The DCLG said it was "content to let the event proceed".

UK Communities Minister Sajid Javid had previously threatened to cancel the event after pro-Israel activists alleged that the events organisers, Frends of al-Aqsa, had links to Hamas.

Ismail Patel, a founder of Friends of al-Aqsa, dismissed the claims as "false and baseless allegations" against his group.

Patel described the government's announcement as "very good news indeed" for freedom of speech in the UK, adding that people wishing to attend can now buy ticckets with confidence.

According to the Palestine Expo's organisers, since the event's scheduling on the weekend of 8 to 9 June was put into doubt, only 300 tickets have been sold. Prior to this, 1,800 had been sold in the first few days after the event was announced.

The event, which will be held at the QE2 centre in London, is expected to attract around 10,000 people.