UJIA Chairman wows at rally

UJIA Chairman Mick Davis addressed the bouyant crowd at the Salute to Israel rally on Sunday 29 June.

He spoke passionatly, describing Israel as "in my heart and is part of my Jewish soul".

He was extremely well received and ended his stirring speech to a wave of applause and cheers.

Please read below to see what Mick said on the day.

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Mick Davis - UJIA Chairman, Salute to Israel Rally

Over 1800 years ago, the Roman Emperor Hadrian put our ancient land of Judea to the torch in response to Bar Kochba's revolt against tyranny. He drove out our ancestors into a long and terrifying exile. He sought to end our sovereign right to live in our own Land. He called it Syria Palaestina and in the words of Isaiah: The Land was desolate!

Affronted by the will of our people to be free he sought to eradicate us from History. He was done with the Jews, he was done with Israel.

Well where is Hadrian today and his great Roman Empire?

I will tell you where they are; they are buried beneath the sands of history.

And where are the Jewish People.

I will tell you where they are: They are back in our ancient Land of Israel, the Land that G-d gave us and they are here in this square, today, in joyous celebration of 60 years of the Modern State of Israel.

We are here today in defiance of our enemies who seek to delegitimize our right to our own Land, in defiance of our enemies who denigrate the great and marvellous achievements of these 60 years, in defiance of those who have turned their backs on their heritage and who would rather write letters of discontent or establish common cause with anti-semites who seek our downfall and in defiance and as an example to those too timid to boldly assert their pride in Israel and say with conviction that:

I am a Jew, a loyal citizen of Great Britain, but that Israel is in my heart and is part of my Jewish soul.

This is our voice, the authentic voice of the Jewish Community of the United Kingdom! A voice of commitment and by the way the voice of a people who stand for Justice too, but justice for all of the people of that region including the people of Israel.

Sixty years of hope, struggle, sacrifice but sixty years of great achievement. Not a perfect country to be sure but one which gathered in the weak and homeless, built great places of learning and research, established institutions of democracy and justice without peer in its region and a country which despite all the war and mayhem that is its short history never compromised on the quest for peace.

Today, You and I have walked down the streets of this great city proclaiming with just cause our passion and commitment to our land. Schools, shuls, welfare organisations, youth movements -- every facet of our community has stepped forward in celebration and solidarity with our brothers and sisters who have built and will continue to build the Modern State of Israel.

This project , the greatest project undertaken by the Jewish People since Moses led them to be free men and Joshua marched them across the Jordan between the mountains of Eval and Grizim, is the work of all of the Jewish People not just those who live in Israel. It is the responsibility of every Jew in every part of the world and that is our legitimacy, that is our cause and that is our celebration here today.

And I believe with a perfect faith that, one day not too far off, we will return to this square to celebrate peace in Israel -- peace with its neighbours and an enduring and just peace with the Palestinian People with whom we share this ancient Land.

But for now enjoy this day and mark it as a time when the British Jewish Community came together as one to celebrate Israel's 60th birthday, to declare unequivocally our love for Israel -- and to proclaim that Israel is ours and will be ours forever.