HUNDREDS of cyclists who raised over £50,000 for Palestinian children were met by cheering crowds yesterday as they finished their 500 mile journey from Edinburgh to London.

Cyclists taking part in the Big Ride for Palestine were greeted with a rally in London’s Archbishop’s Park at which prominent Palestine supporters, such as Unite general secretary Len McCluskey and Dr Mona El Farra, spoke.

The money raised will go to the Middle Eastern Children’s Alliance, a charity which cares for 400,000 children left suffering psychological trauma from Israeli bombing and loss of close family members.

The bike ride coincided with the first anniversary of the 2014 Israeli assault on Gaza. 551 children were killed last summer including four Palestinian boys deliberately killed on Gaza beach by an Israeli air strike. This was a defining moment during last summer’s attack, and was met with widespread public anger which prompted an investigation.

Organiser of the bike ride Dermot MacWard told the Star that it was “not only important to raise money but also raise awareness about the crimes committed by Israel against Palestine and call for political change.”

Mr MacWard told the Star that the cyclists had been met with a hugely positive response from the public across Britain and that it was time to build pressure on the government to “stop arming Israel.”

He said that public opinion and boycotts were key to forcing Israel to stop breaking international laws and recognise the rights of Palestinians. 

Mr MacWard went on to compare Israel’s regime to the apartheid government in South Africa, in which international public anger played an important role in undermining and bringing down a racist government propped up by Western powers. 

An early day motion to support the charity ride was tabled in June and received the support of 42 MPs including Labour leadership candidate Jeremy Corbyn.