Islington Friends of Yibna
 Islington Friends of Yibna(Pro-Palestinian group)   | |
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| Founder | Yael Kahn |
Islington Friends of Yibna (IFY) is a group founded by anti-Zionist activist Yael Kahn in solidarity with Palestinians who were ethnically cleansed from their village of Yibna in 1948 when the State of Israel was created.[1]
Yibna had a population of 5,420 in 1948, but was taken by Israeli forces on 4 June 1948, and was depopulated during the military assault and expulsion.[2]
Exhibition of Paintings from Yibna
In 2011 IFY exhibited the paintings received from Yibna artists at the Assembly Rooms (Islington Town Hall, Upper Street) from Monday 26th to Friday 30th July 2011.
IFY received 46 art works direct from Gaza, created under the harsh conditions where people struggle to find food and where art materials are even more scarce. IFY immensely treasure these art pieces expressing the artists’ feelings, horrors, thoughts as well as their dreams. In all defiance of the siege the 34 pieces of artwork reached London.
Most of the artists are from Yibna refugee camp in Rafah, Gaza. The plan is to exhibit the artwork across the UK and at the end of the year to sell the art pieces, either based on reserved bids or an end-of-tour auction. 100% of the price will go to the artists. IFY plan to produce a catalogue including info about the artists including their personal stories, life under siege, and the background to the work.[3]
Palestinian aid flotilla
In June 2010, the mother of an Islington woman who was part of the Palestinian aid flotilla stormed by Israeli troops praised her daughter’s courage.
Alex Harrison, 32, from the Marquess Estate off Essex Road, was on one of the boats boarded by soldiers as they attempted to deliver goods to the war-torn Gaza Strip on Monday. At least nine people were killed during the incident.
Throughout the week, pro-Palestinian campaigners from Islington Friends of Yibna took to the streets outside the Israeli Embassy in Kensington, unfurling a home-made banner with Alex Harrison’s name it.
The organisation’s chairwoman, Yael Kahn, said: “This massacre is the result of the appeasement policies towards Israel. The siege won’t be lifted unless the world stops its appeasement of this terrorist state.”[4]
