Lucy Dee succumbed to her injuries earlier today in hospital (photo credit: SWU).

I can’t help think, if the family could turn back time, would they still choose to go & live on illegally occupied land, in a war zone, based on radicalised theocratic beliefs. alas, I fear the answer will be, yes. 😔

The UK government, including the EU have a long-standing position that the OPTs are acts of illegality by the state of Israel, under international law. There are no doubts about this from a legal standpoint. Why then, do some British families choose to go and live there?

It’s a vexing question for any person not familiar with the now too often radicalised, and politicised concept of Aliyah. Aliyah in Judaism simply means “going up”, and it is interpreted to mean as going up and living on the land of Israel. Now, that might seem all very innocuous, and it can be. Because those who do Aaliyah, referred to as Olims, can do so and live in sovereign Israel.

The problems arise when people like the Dee’s adopt the radical, politicised manifestation of the Aliyah – where they very intentionally choose to go and live on the illegally occupied Palestinian land (OPTs). From a religious perspective, there is no requirement to do so. But, from a political and Zionist ideology perspective, there is. Because the people who opt for this option, believe all of historic Palestine belongs to Israel and the Jews, and that Palestine has no right to exist, nor do the Palestinians have a right to self-determination.

That cannot be right or be allowed to be normalised. And by and large it isn’t, hence the long-standing position of the vast majority of countries in the world. However, de-facto this may become normalised if increasing numbers of people are allowed to carry out the radicalised, politicised interpretation of the Aliyah.

Doing so is a major hinderance to peace in the region. And it places both sides; Israelis and Palestinians alike, in more danger. It doesn’t make them any safer.

As Francesca Alabanese, (United Nations Special Rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories), crucially outlined in a tweet earlier today, and I paraphrase; “Israel and Israelis have a right to be in and claim self-defence in sovereign Israel, they don’t have a right to be in or claim self-defence in the illegally occupied Palestinian territories”.