A lot has happened since the appalling attacks by Hamas of October 7th and the situation in Gaza remains unresolved. I share the horror of many people at the continued loss of civilian life, and whilst it is difficult to ascertain reliable figures from Hamas controlled agencies, the number of fatalities, specifically involving children is tragic and unacceptable.
I support the UK Government’s calls for Israel to do more to ensure that it minimises civilian casualties and it is particularly important that every step is taken to avoid a parallel flare up in the occupied territories in the West Bank where Hamas is not in control. This is not made any easier by the activities of a small number of Israeli settlers in areas where they have no legal right to be. I have spoken out about this before and seen the problem at first hand on my travels to the Palestinian Territories. I believe that any lasting solution in the area must include the removal of these illegal and provocative settlements.
Since the atrocities, the UK has committed £87 million in aid to Palestine, including an extra £60 million in November 2023. The humanitarian aid was given unrestricted access to those in need throughout the 5-day pause supported by the Prime Minister on the 31st of October, who said that the UK would support all efforts to ensure life-saving aid reaches those in need, including temporary humanitarian pauses. I have received many emails from constituents calling on me to back a ceasefire and expressing outrage at the ‘excesses’ of the Israeli military offensive. Most are well-intentioned and balanced whilst others have accused me and the Government of being complicit with murder, war crimes and genocide. This is not helpful. Language is important as is looking at the facts. As someone who has campaigned for official recognition of the first real genocide of the 20th century, namely the Armenian Genocide of 1915-21, and one of the MPs who led the moves to label the oppression of the Uyghurs by the Chinese Government as genocide, this is an issue I take very seriously.
I have yet to see evidence that the activities of the Israeli Government constitute genocide however excessive some might judge their military offensive. This is not a phrase that should be used flippantly, and I have therefore challenged constituents using that term to produce the evidence, which so far none have been able to do. If the Israeli Government is to be accused of wrongdoings and held to account, then it is important that these are accurate. By contrast Hamas is openly committed to the extermination of the state of Israel and its right to exist, and the taking of life purely on the basis of someone’s ethnicity as Jewish. It is important to acknowledge that, and that situation is not going to change simply by calling for a ceasefire. But as I have repeatedly said it is imperative that Israel upholds its commitments in international law.
A number of constituents wrote requesting me to support an amendment to the Kings Speech in our debate last month which was debated on November 15th and subsequently attacked me when I didn’t. Along with most of my Parliamentary colleagues including most Labour front benchers and MPs, I did not support this amendment for 3 reasons. First this was a vote specifically on the contents of the Kings Speech and the Government legislative programme for the coming parliamentary year. That legislative programme does not contain any measures on Israel/Gaza or indeed any other foreign policy area as is normal. To vote for these amendments which rejected the Kings Speech would have meant me voting against my own Government’s programme which I am obviously not going to do and would be rightly criticised if I had.
Secondly, some people seem to think that British MPs have the power to turn the conflict in Gaza on and off simply by voting one way or another. Alas that is not the case and Israel has every right to ignore us. Tabling motions and effectively shaming MPs to vote for them or risk being attacked as complicit in war crimes or genocide is irresponsibly simplistic and tokensim of the worst kind, which I want no part of.
Thirdly, I question what a ceasefire would achieve, other than in the very short term. The temporary pause in hostilities was a welcome break to allow urgent humanitarian aid to come into Gaza and for humanitarian agencies to help the sick and most vulnerable. Having said that it also allowed Hamas the opportunity to regroup and reorder its military capability and there are worrying accounts of how Hamas has been diverting much of the essential aid intended for Palestinians in genuine need. This appears to be what has happened with much of the £10bn plus aid sent annually to Gaza by western governments (agencies) in recent years and reinforces the charge that Hamas cares not at all about the Palestinian population it governs.
As it was, the ceasefire was broken by the brutal murder of 2 Jewish civilians in Jerusalem by Hamas supporters and subsequently the firing of rockets into Israel from Gaza. In addition, Hamas blocked the release of further hostages including women and children. The determination of Hamas to continue waging indiscriminate violence against Israelis appears undiminished and of course around half the hostages remain in captivity with those released attesting to the violence and abuse they have been subjected to. A ceasefire allows the Hamas infrastructure to continue its genocidal campaign and all the time they have that capability there can be no settlement and peace in the Middle East either for Israelis or Palestinians oppressed by Hamas. Hamas must be eliminated and expelled from the area altogether in much the same way as the PLO were exiled to Tunisia many decades ago and never recovered their position, albeit the PLO were not a patch on the barbarity and fanaticism of Hamas.
Since Israeli troops entered Gaza the full extent of the Hamas terror machine is becoming clearer – military control centres under hospitals, ammunition factories in residential blocks of flats, rocket launch pads in schools and cemeteries, and a vast network of clandestine underground tunnels to service them all. So too the true nature of the horrific attacks on Israelis on October 7th has become evidenced and clear. That day represented an existential change in the operation of hostilities and cannot be justified under any circumstances, regardless of the history and injustices on all sides that led up to it. It was quite simply barbaric and inhumane and anyone who fails to acknowledge that or justify it in some way really does need to look to their own conscience.
As regards your specific request for the UK to stop sending arms to Israel how do you expect Israel to defend itself against these terrorist attacks if it is the subject of an international arms embargo? As it is there are very strict protocols for British companies selling any arms to all foreign countries and this is rigorously enforced. Hamas is of course heavily armed by Iran and other terrorist states. How do you intend to impose an even-handed boycott on arms provided (not even sold) to Hamas by them and why is there no mention of putting any pressure on those nations to desist from being complicit in the conflict in Gaza and Israel? If the UK and other western nations stop supporting Israel right to self-defence Iran will not see this as a peace opportunity but instead, they would only empower Hamas further, and sustainable peace in the region will be an even more distant prospect.
On the other specific issue of opposing ‘any action to coerce or forcibly transfer the population out of Gaza,’ Israel has categorically stated that it does not foresee a long-term future for itself in Gaza and wants a neighbouring Palestinian controlled by moderates committed to respecting their mutual boundaries. It is difficult to see why Israel would want otherwise and of course it was the Israeli Government which forcibly removed Jewish settlers from the area before giving Gaza its independence almost 20 years ago.
As was the case when I visited Israel and Palestine with both Israel supporting and Palestine supporting organisations, I have sought to take an objective view on recent events and attended many briefings by those on both sides of the divide. I do not make these comments lightly therefore and whether you agree with me or not I hope you can respect them and the manner in which I have come to these conclusions.
Last Saturday I spent the afternoon at the Metropolitan Police control centre in Lambeth observing the very substantial operation around policing of the demonstrations, mostly organised by pro-Palestinian groups. Whilst I raised concerns about any demonstrations taking place on Armistice Day in London, I absolutely uphold the rights of everyone in this country to demonstrate peacefully and within the law. I am glad to say that in most instances that has been the case and I want to praise the police for the very difficult and demanding job that they have had on successive weekends for the last 2 months now.
There are some who have transgressed the law and whose actions are clearly anti-Semitic and it is right that they meet the full force of the law. Similarly, those who have expressed Islamophobic hatred and in the case of the extreme right thugs who tried to storm the Cenotaph on November 11th, are more interested in pursuing violence, they need to be pursued too and it is right that most of the arrests happened at that event. I am concerned about the impact recent events have had on the both the Jewish and Muslim communities who live peacefully in the UK and are very welcome. Whatever is going on in the Middle East there is no justification for abuse against those who have made their homes in this country, and they should not have to fear attacks.
As I have said whilst many constituents may not agree with the stand, I have taken I hope you will respect it and my reasoning for it. I am sure we are all agreed though that we need to see an end to hostilities in Israel and Gaza as soon as possible but in a way that is sustainable where Gaza can be rebuilt for the benefit of moderate Palestinians, and Israelis can leave without the constant fear of attack from Hamas and its associates and both nations respect their borders.
