A JEWISH woman living in Belfast has hit out at the DUP over using "Jewish safety" as a reason to remove pro-Palestinian graffiti from the wall outside the Royal Victoria Hospital.

Last week, DUP leader Gavin Robinson said that people from the Jewish community living here were fearful and that racism and antisemitism are real and should be challenged with incidents reported to the relevant authorities. 

Mr Robinson was referring to graffiti outside the Royal Victoria Hospital (RVH) which read 'Stop the Genocide, Stop Israeli Terror, From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free!' 

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The graffiti has been removed and has since been daubed over with 'F**k the DUP, Free Palestine', which has been claimed by republican dissident group Lasair Dhearg (see video below).

Sue Pentel, who is a member of Jews for Palestine-Ireland, and who lives in Belfast, previously worked in the RVH.

"As a member of the Jewish community who worked in the hospital for nine years I was disturbed to hear from Gavin Robinson's interview on the radio that others in the Jewish community were fearful, that racism and antisemitism are real and should be challenged and incidents reported to the relevant authorities.

Sue Pentel
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Sue Pentel

"The slogan 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' is not aimed at Jews and neither is it antisemitic.

"Asserting that Palestine should be free in the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, defined historically as Palestine is critical of Israel.
 
"It is unacceptable to use Jewish safety as a reason not to criticise Israel and not to talk about the genocide in Gaza. 
 
"Yet, it is precisely these war crimes and crimes against humanity that have made the world a much less safe place for all of us including Jewish people. 

"To be clear – Jewish safety, Jewish history and the German holocaust should not be used as justification for apartheid and genocide. Hundreds of thousands of Jews oppose Zionism, racism and the belief that Judea and Samaria, from the river to the sea,  should become a Jewish state which denies equal rights to indigenous Palestinians.

"Lastly, it appears that Mr Robinson and colleagues have not been listening to Israeli politicians preaching hate and intolerance."