When British Jews Finally Break the Silence

An acute moral unrest

A moral fracture now runs through the British Jewish community. As Gaza is bombed into ruins and civilians bear the cost of political blindness, prominent members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews are publicly taking a stand. A rare—but necessary—surge of conscience, in response to institutions that have long confused communal solidarity with unconditional allegiance.

“Do not kill the innocent and the righteous, for I will not acquit the guilty.”
לֹא תַהֲרֹג נָקִי וְצַדִּיק כִּי לֹא אַצְדִּיק רָשָׁע
Exode / Shemot 23:7

April 16, 2025 marks a discreet but weighty turning point. Thirty-six members of the Board of Deputies of British Jews—the main body officially representing the Jewish community in the UK—signed an open letter, published in the Financial Times. There, they condemned Israel’s resumed military operations in Gaza, its breach of the ceasefire, and the silence of those who, in the name of solidarity, turn away from the devastation of an entire population.

These signatories are neither fringe activists nor outside agitators: they speak from within, from the very heart of a structure historically aligned with the Israeli state, regardless of who is in power. And that is precisely what gives their words such weight—and makes them so deeply unsettling.

Locked institutions, silenced ethics

This letter exposes a profound discomfort within traditional Jewish institutions—of which the Board is emblematic in the UK, just as the CRIF is in France. Over time, these bodies have mutated into informal satellites of Israeli diplomacy, assuming the role of guardians of a political orthodoxy in which any critique of Israel is promptly labelled as divisive, or even traitorous.

In practice, they speak for everyone, yet listen to no one—least of all to those who have long warned against a state-based Zionism turned war machine, a tool of domination, and a betrayal of Judaism’s ethical foundations.

A second outcry: the voice of the rabbis

A few days later, a second courageous act reinforced the first. On April 25, 2025, twenty-nine British rabbis—including Rabbi Howard Cooper—published their own statement in the Financial Times. They declared, without ambiguity:

“War can never be waged for revenge or expansion.”

And added:

“We refuse to allow the values of our tradition to be used to justify the suffering of innocents.”

Rooted in Torah and rabbinic teaching, this letter draws a moral line in the sand: loyalty to Israel cannot override the fundamental ethical demands of Judaism.

A free Jewish voice exists—and disturbs

Thankfully, this voice is not isolated. In France, the UK, and the US, other Jewish organisations and figures have, for years, offered a clear, principled critique of state Zionism. In France: UJFP (Union Juive Française pour la Paix), Juifs pour la Paix, and individuals like Dominique Vidal, Rony Brauman, or the late Marek Halter, who rejected the political weaponisation of Holocaust memory.

In the UK: Na’amod, Jews for Justice for Palestinians. In the US: Jewish Voice for Peace. All defend a Judaism of conscience, rooted in justice, universality, and the moral obligation to challenge power—even when it comes from within.

Identity is not diplomacy

What these voices remind us is that neither a community nor its dignity can be saved by suppressing inner dissent. Jewish memory must not be used to excuse the impunity of a government. History has taught us that vigilance cannot stop at the edge of one’s own group.

This is not merely a political disagreement: it is a fight to restore ethics to the heart of Jewish representation. To be able to say, without censorship: Not in our name.

Courage is not where it claims to be

Those now punishing these critical voices are not defending unity. They are defending a hollowed-out institution, captive to a foreign political line and unable to respond to the moral distress of its own members.

Those who speak out, on the other hand, restore something essential: the possibility of a non-aligned Judaism, willing to confront uncomfortable truths. That kind of courage does not divide—it seeks to preserve what can still be saved: the honour of a tradition, and loyalty to its deepest principles.

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Footnote

Hosny Salah is a Palestinian photojournalist from Gaza, working as a press correspondent for several media outlets. As a reminder, many have been killed — and a number of them were directly targeted by IDF soldiers.