Srinagar: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) – CPI(M) – in a solidarity meeting held in Jammu and Kashmir’s capital Srinagar today (June 17) urged the Union government to break its silence and advocate for peace in the conflict-ravaged Palestine and Iran.The meeting was held at Gupkar Road in Srinagar where dozens of party leaders and activists led by the CPI(M) general secretary M.Y. Tarigami staged a demonstration to condemn the “genocide and war crimes” allegedly committed by Israel in its war on Palestine.Raising slogans against Israel, the CPI (M) leaders and activists expressed solidarity with the people of Palestine “in their just struggle for nationhood, dignity and freedom”.The party also urged the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Union government to “take a principled stand consistent with our historical support to the Palestinian cause and immediately stop all military and security cooperation with Israel”.Speaking with reporters after the meeting, Tarigami said that Israel’s ongoing attacks on the civilians in Palestine and the country’s latest military conflict with Iran has sparked concerns of a major flare up.He said that the CPI-M staged demonstrations across the country on Tuesday in solidarity with the people of Palestine and Iran while appealing the people to come out of their homes and protest against Israel’s “aggression”.Tarigami said that after the crisis in Palestine, which he described as a major challenge for the world, Israel’s war on Iran posed a threat to global peace.The CPI(M) meeting at Srinagar on June 17, 2025. Photo: Ubaid Mukhtar.“Unfortunately, the United States and European countries are standing in complete support of the war in Iran which could spark a global crisis. The embers of war will flare up and spread in the region,” he said.The CPI (M) leader, who represents Kulgam constituency in J&K assembly, said that the world leaders should stop the acts of “terrorism and barbarism” being committed against the people of Palestine and Iran by Israel.“We are holding this token protest so the world knows that the people of Kashmir and our country are standing with the voices who speak against barbarism in Iran and Palestine. We stand with the people of Palestine and Iran and we appeal to the Union government to preserve the traditions of standing with peace and the people of Palestine,” he said.He added, ‘We can’t afford to stay silent. If there is a war in Iran today, who knows what will happen tomorrow? The Union government must break its silence and advocate for peace and justice to prevent the embers of war from flaring up again”.‘We stand in solidarity’Abdul Rashid, a CPI(M) activist from Shopian, who participated in the meeting, said that the party had observed Palestine day across the country on Tuesday to express solidarity with the people affected by Israel’s war.“We demand that the Israeli aggression in Palestine and the martyrdom of Gaza’s children should stop immediately. With US support, Israel has now attacked Iran. The world should take notice of these unprovoked attacks on humanity. We stand in solidarity with the people of these two nations,” he said.Zahoor Ahmad, a CPI(M) worker, said that India’s support for Palestine was an integral part of the country’s foreign policy and the government under the prime minister Narendra Modi should stand with the “helpless” people of Palestine.“We demand that the people of Palestine should get their land and their rights back,” he said.A poster at the CPI(M) meeting at Srinagar on June 17, 2025. Photo: Ubaid Mukhtar.Ghulam Mohiuddin, a resident of Kulgam and J&K state committee member of CPI(M), said that the party has staged protests at district and tehsil levels across the country in protest against Israel’s “barbarism” in Palestine.“We have come to raise our voice against Israel’s aggression and in favour of the people of Palestine,” he said.An unrelenting military campaign launched by the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Gaza will complete two years in the coming October with at least 55,432 Palestinian people killed and 128,923 wounded, according to Gaza’s health ministry.At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel when Hamas launched its attacks on October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.The conflict between Iran and Israel entered its fourth day on Tuesday with the death toll from Israel’s attacks on Iran rising to more than 220, including 70 women and children while more than 20 people have been killed in Iranian attacks on Israel.