VFP UK condemns the drone assassination strike conducted by the U.S.A. government and military in Iraq on Friday 3 January 2020 and strongly urges the UK Government to do the same.
Following Friday’s assassination of Qassem Soleimani and six others, the risk of war between Iran and the U.S.A. (which will inevitably include British troops) is greatly increasing.
ALL MEMBERS AND SUPPORTERS IN THE LONDON AREA are invited to join us for a demonstration at Downing Street this Tuesday 7 January at 6pm.
We urge all members and supporters of VFP UK to take action to demand a de-escalation of violence and accountability for the dangerous actions of the U.S.A. government.
We also remind all serving members of the Armed Forces that they have a right to refuse to obey illegal and immoral orders.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab claims that the UK is trying to de-escalate tensions in Iran in order to avoid a war. On the other hand, he also said the UK understands the position the US were in and has described Major General Soleimani as a ‘regional menace’ and that “The US has a right to exercise self-defence”.
We, as veterans, know that war is not the solution to the problems we face in the 21st century. In fact, prior to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, it was already known that warfare would lead to countless civilian deaths, and increase international tensions and “terrorism”. The reality is – war is terrorism!
We would like our members to:
- Organise in their regional groups to condemn the US actions and urge our government to do the same;
- Write to your local MP’s and Newspapers;
- If you write a letter, please forward a copy of it to the Policy Group for distribution amongst our members;
- Speak at and/or attend local rallies or public events;
- Contact your Regional Coordinator or Policy Group members if you have ideas or would like to get involved.
Peace is the answer!
Veterans For Peace UK 
Thank you Les Havell… It all makes grim sense now. I get the sense watching the funeral footage that Soleimami was a figure for peace across the middle east of the same status as Nelson Mandela in Africa and the West, (after he had served 25 years in prison dubbed a terrorist, and then awarded the Nobel peace prize). I just hope this proposed meeting with Saudi Arabia comes out in the news and that the foundations laid by Soleimami bear fruit anyway. I will be there at Downing street this evening, not that any demonstration will make much difference with this lot of right-wingers in our government. Fingers crossed.
before any action is taken i think members should be aware that Soleimami was on a peace mission between saudi and Yemen and that the u.s. strike might have been to stop any peace deal between saudi and Iran …. i think this is a more plausible reason for the u.s. action as they don’t want stability in these countries
“The premier said that he was due to meet Soleimani at 8:30 am local time on Friday
before the US assassinated the general a few hours earlier.”
“Iraq’s Caretaker Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has said that
Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani was set to deliver Tehran’s reply to an earlier Saudi message
regarding de-escalation talks mediated by Baghdad when he was assassinated”
That’s interesting Les and it hasn’t had much air time. Can you tell me your source please?
yo …Steve Heaney …. i heard it on rt and those quotes of the Iraqi pm come from press tv
A peaceful presence at Downing Street this evening will be appropriate. I hope it is well attended and gets some coverage.
To my mind, protesting for Julian Assange’s release is more pertinent (and has no hint of knee-jerk reaction)