HEALTH workers in 17 towns and cities across Britain staged silent vigils last night for their counterparts in Gaza killed by Israel’s relentless bombardment.

Doctors, nurses, consultants and other NHS staff wearing their hospital uniforms lit candles in memory of almost 280 Gaza hospital staff killed in the bombing as the wider death toll of Palestinians passed 20,000.

The vigils took place as plans were announced to mobilise millions of people for a repeat in January of the huge protests which took place in Britain and worldwide after Israel launched its murderous war on the people of Gaza in October.

A global day of protest will take place on Saturday January 13, demanding a ceasefire and an end to the war on Gaza.

In Britain, it will be organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), Friends of al-Aqsa, Stop the War Coalition, Muslim Association of Britain, Palestinian Forum in Britain and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

They said in a joint statement: “Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has now killed over 20,000 Palestinians with thousands more missing and presumed dead under the rubble of their own homes.

“It has left 1.7 million displaced, sheltering where they can and facing an outbreak of major epidemics.

“The international community is failing to act by demanding that Israel cease its assault and lift the siege to bring the slaughter to an end and ensure urgent humanitarian aid can be brought to the people of Gaza.

“Across the world, the solidarity movement has acted to mobilise millions of people to the streets demanding a permanent ceasefire. We need to intensify this pressure by co-ordinating actions across the globe.

“We call for a day of action for Gaza on January 13 and support the call from Palestinian civil society to unite to call for a permanent ceasefire, to stop the Gaza Genocide, to end the occupation and dismantle Israeli apartheid.”

PSC has launched an appeal to fund more protests.

Director Ben Jamal said: “Together, we’ve already organised six of the biggest demonstrations in the world this year.

“We’ve mobilised millions of people from all different walks of life, all united in our refusal to let politicians hide from their responsibilities.

“But now more than ever, we need to keep that momentum up.

“We have to raise as much as possible by January 1 to ensure we can make our next protest as huge, as loud and as impactful as possible.

“Protest marches are how we make sure Palestinian people and the horrors they are enduring every single day cannot be forgotten.

“Protests are how we force politicians to pay attention and act to save lives. Protests are how we keep people here in the UK and in Palestine hoping for a better future.”

The health workers’ vigils across Britain yesterday were organised by the international group Healthcare Workers for Palestine (HWP).

Spokesperson and Bradford paediatrician Dr Reyhana Henderson said the vigils were “for the fallen colleagues — almost 280 to date — one of the deadliest conflicts so far for medical personnel.”

“We believe this was a truly arresting scene with so many colleagues, stood in scrubs, holding placards with the names of our deceased fellow healthcare workers, killed trying to assist others and simply doing their job.”

Yesterday, it was reported that north Gaza’s last remaining hospital has no medicine, no food and no water for patients.

Observers said it was no longer functioning as a hospital, but as “a hospice where people go to die.”

Actions today include a Greater Manchester Friends of Palestine protest targeting the BBC studios in Salford in Greater Manchester, meeting at 1pm at BBC HQ, MediaCity UK, Salford, M50 2QH.