Shaher Saed addresses TUC Congress

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Honourable General Secretary Paul Nowak,

Dear brothers and sisters of the TUC Conference,

Distinguished guests,

It’s a privilege to stand before you today, coming from Palestine, carrying the pain and hopes of our people in my heart, and speaking for our children, women, youth, elderly, and workers who face daily struggles under the burden of occupation, genocide, and starvation. I offer you heartfelt thanks for your unwavering support for our just cause—the cause of Palestine, which isn’t just our fight but the fight of all who value freedom worldwide. Your impact, dear brother General Secretary Paul, is undeniable.

Sisters and brothers

I come to you from Palestine, where our people in the Gaza Strip endure relentless bloodshed, ethnic cleansing, genocide, and starvation under a brutal occupation.

The toll of those killed in the Gaza Strip in the last 700 days is staggering, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics:

• 64,944 victims killed in Gaza

These include:

• 18,592 children
• 12,400 women
• 4,412 elderly
• And 360 people including 114 children who died due to starvation and lack of basic necessities
• Plus an additional 1,029 people killed in the West Bank including 210 children

In Gaza:

• Among those killed 1,411 medical personnel
• 245 journalists
• 800 educators
• 113 civil defence workers
• 203 UNRWA staff
• Plus, the deliberate targeting and killing of journalists.

There are also

• 11,200 people missing

These include 4,700 children and women

Out of a workforce of 1,350,000 in Gaza and the West Bank, 507,000 workers are unemployed.

Major corporations working with the Israeli government have fuelled oppression against workers, stripping 240,000 workers of their wages for the past 23 months.

The genocidal war’s impact has also left 267,000 workers in the West Bank jobless over the same period, with workers facing harassment, arrests, and attacks with live and rubber bullets, resulting in 33 workers killed by the Israeli military and over 30,000 detained, with arrests happening daily.

The Director-General of the International Labour Organization’s report makes clear the intolerable situation facing Palestinian workers.

Sisters and brothers,

The situation in the West Bank is a genuine crisis. The West Bank has been completely cut off from occupied Jerusalem since 1967. Cities, villages, and camps face harsh collective punishment, surrounded by over 1,050 electronic iron gates that only open on the orders of Israeli soldiers. These measures restrict movement between cities, villages and disrupting everyday life.

Palestinians face severe limits on their freedom of movement. Traveling abroad is only possible through one land crossing, the King Hussein Bridge (also called the Allenby Bridge), fully controlled by the Israeli military. It’s the only way out of the West Bank to Jordan and the rest of the world, as there’s no airport or other crossing. The bridge operates limited hours, from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM daily, with even shorter hours on Fridays, closing at noon, and it’s completely closed on Saturdays.

The West Bank is also facing systematic destruction and displacement, with camps like Jenin, Tulkarm, Balata, Al-Far’a, and Nur Shams subjected to vandalism and destruction for no reason, other than to subdue and choke the Palestinian people.

Sisters and brothers,

The West Bank has become a massive prison for Palestinians and a playground for extremist settlers who chase us, shoot at us, throw stones at cars, cut down trees, burn farms, and kill livestock. Ask your embassy in Jerusalem about this—I stand by every word I’ve said. Israeli settlements in the West Bank are an existential threat, controlling 80% of the land . Restrictions in the West Bank make life harder for travellers and worsen the challenges of life. For example, to be here with you, I left Nablus on Friday morning and didn’t arrive until late Saturday night. This control is worsened by recent racist policies such as the Nation-State law and ongoing settler violence, which goes beyond vandalism to include murder.

Brother General Secretary Paul and Sister Mariela have seen some of what I’ve just shared when they visited the West Bank.

Sisters and brothers,

After 58 years of this occupation, governments around the world need to act, including the British government .

The British government must call for:

• An immediate ceasefire
• An end to the illegal occupation
• Ban trade in goods from the illegal settlements
• Suspend the UK-Israel trade agreement
• End all arms licenses to Israel
• Unconditionally support the recognition of the State of Palestine
• Ensure accountability for those responsible for war crimes and genocide

Sisters and brothers,

Palestine’s acceptance as an observer state in the International Labour Organization, after being just a liberation movement, is a historic step that gives hope to our people and workers. This milestone is the direct result of global workers’ unity and their steadfast support, which secured this vote for our rights. We deeply value this decision and see it as a key achievement to build on as we work toward full membership in the organization.

Sisters and brothers,

Brother General Secretary, you were clear when you spoke at the Seventh Conference of the Palestine General Federation of Trade Unions, speaking to Palestinian workers and national leadership.

You called for an immediate ceasefire, the humanitarian distribution of aid, condemned the Israeli occupation as illegal, affirmed workers’ rights to dignified work, and supported an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. You emphasized that this isn’t just Palestine’s cause but a matter of global solidarity and human rights.

Your passionate words were well received by every Palestinian who heard you at the conference, carrying the true spirit of British workers’ solidarity with our people—not as a fleeting gesture but as a sincere, powerful stance.

I offer my gratitude, especially to the General Secretary, the General Council and President, and the TUC Office , for your role in supporting Palestinian workers. We look forward to collaborating and forging an agreement between the TUC and the PGFTU. We also thank you for the TUC Aid project you have supported in the West Bank.

Thank you, workers of the United Kingdom.

We reaffirm today that social justice and decent work are impossible under these conditions. Yet, despite all challenges, we will remain steadfast on our land. No matter how harsh the illegal Israeli occupation, our spirit won’t be broken by starvation, displacement, or genocide. We will stand firm.

Together, let’s build an independent Palestinian state,

With East Jerusalem as its capital.

… The occupation will end.

Palestine will endure.

Free free free Palestine