News

West Wales activists join international march to Gaza border

Published

6 months ago

June 12, 2025

Campaigners walk 30 miles through the Sinai desert to demand humanitarian access to Gaza

ACTIVISTS from West Wales are among thousands of international campaigners marching through Egypt this week in a daring bid to reach the Rafah border crossing and demand humanitarian access to the besieged Gaza Strip.

**Pembrokeshire campaigner: Jim Scott (Image: Facebook)**

At least eight to ten people from Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion, including a CND Cymru delegation, are taking part in the Global March to Gaza, a growing international mobilisation involving more than 4,000 participants from 54 countries.

The group includes Jim Scott of Mathry, a longtime Pembrokeshire campaigner and member of CND Cymru, along with other residents from across Wales. They arrived in Cairo earlier this week and are due to depart for Al Arish in North Sinai on Thursday morning (June 13) via coach, before beginning a 30-mile walk on foot through the desert.

The marchers plan to reach the Rafah crossing on Saturday (June 15), camping en route in tents as they navigate the harsh terrain of the Sinai Peninsula, where daytime temperatures are expected to exceed 35°C. The crossing itself remains under tight Egyptian and Israeli military control.

Organisers say the march is a symbolic act of solidarity and an urgent call for Israel to lift the blockade and allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, where more than 60,000 people have been killed and thousands more displaced, according to activists and aid agencies.

West Wales voices on the frontline

In an open letter sent to Pembrokeshire MP Henry Tufnell, Eluned Morgan MS, and other Welsh and UK representatives, Jim Scott wrote:

“I feel I must act where you have not acted. The UK Government has failed to stop a genocide and has, in fact, been complicit by continuing to authorise arms sales and military cooperation with Israel.”

Scott warned of the dangers marchers face: “We may face arrest, detention, deportation—or worse—military aggression. But we are prepared. History will judge whether we stood with the victims or remained silent.”

Tasmin Nash, a Pembrokeshire art curator and mother of four, also joined the delegation. She told The Herald:

“I saw four bewildered children bleeding on a hospital bed. I cannot rest or stay silent while Israel destroys and burns people alive. I’ve protested, fundraised, disrupted—but now I must walk.”

“Alongside the 12 hearts aboard the Freedom Flotilla, I will do what governments have failed to do—rise and move. The people will make the difference.”

Jo Barrow, aged 60, who also travelled from Wales, added: “I could have been born in Gaza. My children could be the ones we see dying on our screens. When you really absorb that truth, how could I not lend my presence to this cause?”

“We must get the aid in. This is about our collective humanity.”

A march amid uncertainty

Whether the Egyptian authorities will allow the march to proceed to Rafah remains unclear. But organisers have stated that the aim is not confrontation but awareness—to create international pressure on Israel and Western governments to allow aid through the crossing.

The march is timed to coincide with a 7,000-strong convoy approaching Gaza from Tunisia and follows a wave of global actions, including blockades, vigils and civil disobedience.

A spokesperson for CND Cymru said: “We are proud to support this march. The silence of Western governments in the face of genocide is unacceptable. In taking part, we bear witness. And we will not forget the brutality committed.”

“As the Madleen and Conscience flotillas carried aid and the hope of the world, so too does this international march.”

The group is marching with minimal supplies, sleeping rough and relying on community support and crowdfunding to cover basic costs.

Criticism of Welsh complicity

Adam Johannes, of Cardiff Stop the War Coalition, also voiced support for the march and criticised the Welsh Government’s links to arms firms.

“Wales is welcoming weapons manufacturers under the guise of economic development—some of these firms are directly connected to the oppression of Palestinians.”

He added: “We must choose a peace-first approach, just as the Lucas Aerospace workers once proposed turning weapons factories into centres for building life-saving medical devices and wind turbines. The spirit of resistance lives on.”

The Global March to Gaza has been endorsed by dozens of organisations across the UK, including Stop the War Coalition, Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Peace and Justice Project, and Cymdeithas yr Iaith.

The delegation from Wales say they are buoyed by support from home, including crowdfunders, social media campaigns, and solidarity vigils, and remain committed to finishing the journey.

“We may be only a few people from Pembrokeshire,” said Jim Scott, “but we carry with us the conscience of a much wider community. This is what solidarity looks like.”

Business

First wind turbine components arrive as LNG project moves ahead

Published

2 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Tom Sinclair

THE FIRST ship carrying major components for Dragon LNG’s new onshore wind turbines docked at Pembroke Port yesterday afternoon, marking the start of physical deliveries for the multi-million-pound renewable energy project.

The Maltese-registered general cargo vessel Peak Bergen berthed at Pembroke Dock shortly after 4pm on Wednesday, bringing tower sections and other heavy components for the three Enercon turbines that will eventually stand on land adjacent to the existing gas terminal at Waterston.

A second vessel, the Irish-flagged Wilson Flex IV, is due to arrive in the early hours of this morning (Thursday) carrying the giant rotor blades.

The deliveries follow a successful trial convoy on 25 November, when police-escorted low-loader trailers carried dummy loads along the planned route from the port through Pembroke, past Waterloo roundabout and up the A477 to the Dragon LNG site.

Dragon LNG’s Community and Social Performance Officer, Lynette Round, confirmed the latest movements in emails to the Herald.

“The Peak Bergen arrived yesterday with the first components,” she said. “We are expecting another delivery tomorrow (Thursday) onboard the Wilson Flex IV. This will be blades and is currently showing an ETA of approximately 03:30.”

The £14.3 million project, approved by Welsh Ministers last year, will see three turbines with a combined capacity of up to 13.5 MW erected on company-owned land next to the LNG terminal. Once operational – expected in late 2026 – they will generate enough electricity to power the entire site, significantly reducing its carbon footprint.

Port of Milford Haven shipping movements showed the Peak Bergen approaching the Haven throughout Wednesday morning before finally tying up at the cargo berth in Pembroke Dock. Cranes began unloading operations yesterday evening.

Weather conditions are currently favourable for this morning’s arrival of the Wilson Flex IV, which was tracking south of the Smalls at midnight.

The abnormal-load convoys carrying the components from the port to Waterston are expected to begin next week, subject to final police and highway approvals.

A community benefit fund linked to the project will provide training opportunities and energy-bill support for residents in nearby Waterston, Llanstadwell and Neyland.

Further updates will be issued by Dragon LNG as the Port of Milford Haven as the delivery programme continues.

Photo: Martin Cavaney

Crime

Banned for 40 months after driving with cocaine breakdown product in blood

Published

2 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Sarah-Jane Absalom

A MILFORD HAVEN woman has been handed a lengthy driving ban after admitting driving with a controlled drug in her system more than ten times over the legal limit.

SENTENCED AT HAVERFORDWEST

Sally Allen, 43, of Wentworth Close, Hubberston, appeared before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court on Thursday (Dec 4) for sentencing, having pleaded guilty on November 25 to driving with a proportion of a specified controlled drug above the prescribed limit.

The court heard that Allen was stopped on August 25 on the Old Hakin Road at Tiers Cross while driving an Audi A3. Blood analysis showed 509µg/l of Benzoylecgonine, a breakdown product of cocaine. The legal limit is 50µg/l.

COMMUNITY ORDER AND REHABILITATION

Magistrates imposed a 40-month driving ban, backdated to her interim disqualification which began on November 25.

Allen was also handed a 12-month community order, requiring her to complete 10 days of rehabilitation activities as directed by the Probation Service.

She was fined £120, ordered to pay £85 prosecution costs and a £114 surcharge. Her financial penalties will be paid in £25 monthly instalments from January 1, 2026.

The bench—Mrs H Roberts, Mr M Shankland and Mrs J Morris—said her guilty plea had been taken into account when passing sentence.

Local Government

Sewage leak at Pembroke Commons prompts urgent clean-up works

Published

3 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Tom Sinclair

Council pollution officers say they have no enforcement powers over Welsh Water infrastructure

SEWAGE contamination on the Commons in Pembroke has prompted an urgent response from pollution officers, after a leak was reported by a member of the public on Tuesday.

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Pollution Control Team confirmed they were alerted yesterday afternoon to sewage surrounding a manhole cover on the site. The Herald understands that officers immediately notified Welsh Water (DCWW) network technicians to investigate the incident “as a matter of urgency”.

County councillor Jonathan Grimes, who represents Pembroke St Mary South and Monkton, said the authority had been clear that it holds no enforcement powers over Welsh Water assets.

“Whilst we work constructively with Welsh Water, we have no authority to intervene on their apparatus or to carry out enforcement action against them for such pollution incidents,” the Pollution Control Team said in a statement shared with the councillor.

Urgent works underway

Council officers visited the site on Wednesday morning alongside contractors and Welsh Water technicians to assess clean-up options. According to the team, works will include cleaning the contaminated ground in and around the manhole cover and fencing off the affected area “until safe”.

Cllr Grimes said officers would return to the scene on Thursday to check on progress and ensure the area is properly secured.

Residents who notice any further issues have been urged to contact the Pollution Control Team directly.

Further updates are expected later this week.