A candlelit vigil to honour Palestinians affected by the conflict in Gaza has been held by the Barry Greens group and Barry Ceasefire Now group.

The vigil for peace marked a year since the conflict began and took place on Sunday, October 6, in Kings Square, with 20 people attending.

Members of Barry’s Palestinian community also showed up to the service where a dedicated two minutes of silence was held to honour those who’ve died because of the conflict.Image from the candle lit vigil Image from the candle lit vigil (Image: Barry Green Party) Barry Greens group wrote in a statement: "We will stand together in silence to mark the enormous number of lives lost, including more than 16,000 children, and those who continue to be devastatingly impacted by the ongoing crisis."

Don Reynolds leader of the Barry Greens said: “It’s just horrible what’s happening in the world at the moment, we wanted to mark the fact that this has been going on for a year and there are 42,000 people that have been killed.

“We lit candles, and we went round as a circle allowing people to speak as they wished, whether we are Palestinian, Israeli or whatever nationality, colour or creed, we are all human beings.”Barry Ceasefire Now group.Barry Ceasefire Now group. (Image: Barry Ceasefire Now group)

Barry Ceasefire Now group holds a weekly protest outside the MP for the Vale’s office calling for the UK government to take action.

Amjad Salhab, a health care professional originally from Palestine, and member of the ceasefire group said: “We have been holding the vigil for 34 weeks. First it was outside the office of Alun Cairns, the former Conservative MP, and now we are meeting outside the High Street office of the sitting Labour MP Kanishka Narayan.

“We are determined to carry on for as long as it takes to bring about peace. The support we have had from the public is really heartwarming. Last week a passerby shook the hands of all of us and told us how brave we were.”

He continued: “We are disappointed with how the British Government and politicians distinguish between the victims of the different ‘sides’. We appeal to the Government to adhere to international law and do their utmost to stop this collective punishment."

According to Amjad, eight to ten families living in Barry had relatives living in the West Bank.

The next protest is scheduled for Thursday, October 10.