Families plan Gaza children's memorial outside Swindon MP's office

A group of women and their families plan to lay a huge installation of children’s clothes outside the office of North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson.

The installation, backed by Swindon Palestine Solidarity, will be open to the public on Saturday 11th May.

It aims to visualise the catastrophic extent of the killing in Gaza, with a particular focus on the innocent children who’ve lost their lives. 

Each item of clothing will represent one of the children killed since 7 October in the Israel-Gaza conflict, a total which the organisers say stands at over 15,500 Palestinian children and 36 Israeli children.

The organisers, made up mostly of women, are from many different races, religions and backgrounds, unified in their heartbreak of the loss of life in the Gaza-Israel conflict. 

They are calling on other compassionate locals to come and take part in what they hope to be a hugely impactful event.

Spokeswoman Theresa said: "We realise that it is almost impossible to visualise the number of child deaths in this conflict, so this memorial is about helping people get to grips with the scale of what is going on. 

"We also want to make it clear to Justin Tomlinson - who previously voted against a ceasefire - that just like 76% of UK residents, the vast majority of his constituents are calling for a meaningful ceasefire in Gaza and we need him to represent our voices."

The installation will be placed outside Mr Tomlinson’s North Swindon office at the Orbital Shopping Centre from 10am to 10pm, ending with a candlelit vigil, on Saturday 11 May. The organisers say they have the full permission from the Orbital Management Team, and that the clothes will be donated to charity after the event.

Theresa added: "This will be a peaceful, family-friendly memorial and we hope that our community will come and support us. We will need lots of people to achieve this, including the tidy up on Sunday 12 May. 

"Everyone is welcome, so please do come along with any unwanted children’s clothing to add to the installation, or simply stop by and join us in a moment of reflection and solidarity."

For further information on how to get involved or to volunteer, people are invited to visit https://www.facebook.com/swindonpalestine or email [email protected]