U.K.'s boycotters of Israel support a single-state solution

"We tried working with the Israeli public in the past, but we did not manage to make any headway there,"

says Jeff Halper, who heads the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions in the U.K.

"The Israelis as a whole believe there is no partner on the Palestinian side, and are thereby making themselves politically irrelevant. This is why we've had to address the civil society, represented by human rights groups, churches, universities and other organizations to warn against the Israeli apartheid regime," he says.

"The recent success we have experienced in the field is serving to unite different left-wing organizations. Halper says that the 40-year anniversary of the six Day War created a unifying effect on the front against the occupation; the next milestone will occur in 2007 when Israel celebrates its 60th birthday."

the U.K. has seen a multitude of organizations devoted to protesting Israel's occupation of the territories, who organized a mass rally last weekend in the center of London attracted thousands of participants.

Jews for Boycotting Israeli Goods, opened a stand at the rally

the Islamic Council for Human Rights, handed out flyers listing international corporations with branches in Israel,

Palestine Solidarity Campaign handed out flyers calling for the British government to cease its weapons deals with Israel, under the banner "Palestinian blood on British hands."

The activists at these groups may differ on issues such as religion and gender equality, but they are united in their perception of Israel as an apartheid state. They all advocate boycotting Israel and believe in diverting funds from it.

The organizations subscribe to the belief that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must be resolved in the form of a single-state solutions, and granting the Palestinian refugees the right of return

clipped from www.haaretz.com