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Protests took place at an evangelical Christian Creation Fest in Cornwall over the weekend, after campaigners discovered a stall which appeared to call for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza, with leaflets describing Palestinian people as “savage”.
Palestine Solidarity Cornwall took action after literature, which campaigners say amounts to hate speech, was found on the Israeli based ‘Maoz Israel’ stall at the four-day festival.
One article advocates for Donald Trump’s widely condemned ‘Riviera’ plan to ethnically cleanse Gaza of Palestinians and rebuild it as part of Israel.
The article claims that this is necessary because “two-thirds of all structures in Gaza are destroyed” and the World Bank estimates that it will cost $18.5bn to rebuild.
As Palestine Solidarity Cornwall said in a statement, “the article does not mention that it is Israel itself that has caused the destruction of Gaza, and that destroying two thirds of all buildings is in itself a war crime.”
The article claimed President Trump ‘understood’ the ‘opportunity’ of “voluntary evacuation for the 1.7 million Palestinians to other lands.”
“One could argue the plan is of Biblical origin – removing a problematic people from the land,” it added.
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Other articles “demonised and dehumanised” Palestinian children, says PSC, by labelling them all as potential terrorists, with claims that images of injured Palestinian children are “fake suffering” – describing them as “Pallywood”, and adding that “Kids and adults alike are actively involved in manufacturing this narrative.”
Other literature used the language of the far-right, claiming: “We need to help thwart the Islamic invasion of Europe” and describing Palestinian people as having a “vicious, brutal and savage culture”.
Palestine Solidarity Cornwall confronted the stallholders and spoke to the organisers. They later held a silent vigil for Palestinians outside the gates of the festival.
Before being escorted off premises by security, they demanded the organisers review all materials’ on Maoz Israel’s stand.
PSC say they spoke to organisers, questioning how it happened and their ability to perform their due diligence on who is present at the festival.
They also requested other stall holders consider whether they are comfortable standing alongside ‘hate speech’.
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As of last week, Israel’s military has killed at least 60,034 people, including 18,592 children in Gaza so far, according to official reports. IDF bombardments have forced 90% of Gaza’s 2.1 million population to flee their homes, many on multiple occasions. And Israel’s blockade on aid has led to now well-documented starvation among the population.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated last week: “Palestinians in Gaza are enduring a humanitarian catastrophe of epic proportions. This is not a warning. It is a reality unfolding before our eyes.”
A spokesperson for Palestine Solidarity Cornwall said: “It is beyond abhorrent that Creation Fest has allowed Maoz Israel into its event to promote hate speech, genocide and ethnic cleansing. This festival is supposed to promote Christian values and it is impossible to see how justifying and encouraging war crimes fits within this remit.
“As residents of Cornwall we were horrified to discover a stall advocating for war crimes, far-right hatred and demonisation of Muslim people in Wadebridge. This hate speech does not reflect the views of the people of Cornwall and we call on the Royal Cornwall Events Centre, the event organisers, sponsors, speakers, stall holders and attendees to condemn these publications and the inclusion of Maoz Israel at this event.”
The spokesperson told Byline Times: “As far as we can see, the [protest] was a success – Creation Fest removed Maoz Israel from the festival for the final day and will not be inviting them back to the festival.”
Local outlet CornwallLive contacted Creation Fest, which responded by saying it would not be inviting Maoz back to the festival, and their presence at the event does not necessarily coincide with Creation Fest’s views.
A spokesperson for Creation Fest told the outlet: “We are a non-denominational, non-political organisation that welcomes a wide range of Christian speakers, organisations and visitors. Presence as a paid-for exhibitor does not necessarily indicate endorsement of that organisation or its views.
“Following an incident on site [on Saturday] in which a protest organisation caused considerable distress to exhibitors and guests on site, Maoz Israel will not be present at the festival today. We continue to pray for peace in Israel and Gaza and welcome all those who wish to join us in doing so.
“We will be carrying out a full review post festival into all of our policies and procedures around this area.”
Images of the literature found at the Maoz Israel stall can be found here.
Moaz Israel and Creation Fest were contacted for comment.
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