Sheffield Council to fly Palestinian flag following contact from local PCS Branch

Sheffield City Council will mark the UN Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People (29 November) following a request by PCS Yorkshire & Northeast Home Office Branch.

29 November marks the date when, in 1947, the United Nations formally adopted the plan to partition Palestine. The Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People was established by the UN in 1977.

PCS Yorkshire & Northeast Home Office branch secretary Lawrence Barfoot said “We are delighted that Sheffield City Council has agreed to fly the Palestinian flag in solidarity with the people of Gaza and the West Bank who are currently enduring a vicious assault by Israel.”

Lawrence also thanked the branch for allowing the request to go forward.

“Our branch has pledged its support to the Sheffield Palestine Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid, a local, multi-faith organisation with the aim of making Sheffield an apartheid-free zone through boycotting, divestment, and sanctions.”

In a statement, Sheffield City Council said “The Council is currently exploring ways to strengthen its cultural, educational and young people’s links between the two cities. Flying the Palestinian flag on the Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People also allows us to recognise our new links and commitment to Nablus.”

Read how you can support this week's solidarity with Palestine activities and a blog post for us from Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

We encourage members to attend a mass "protest" over their lunch break or outside of work time. But we cannot recommend staff walk out during working hours without a strike mandate.