Starmer under pressure from cabinet to recognise Palestinian statehood
The prime minister is understood to have been urged by a number of senior ministers in different cabinet meetings over recent months that the UK should take a leading role in issuing recognition.
The UK plans to formally acknowledge Palestine as part of a peace process, but only in conjunction with other western countries and 'at the point of maximum impact' – without saying what that would be.
However, there has been a growing sense of desperation and horror inside the Labour cabinet over Israel's killing of starving Palestinian civilians in Gaza, and its attacks on humanitarian agencies, in recent weeks.
'We say that recognising Palestinian statehood is a really important symbol that you can only do once. But if not now, then when?' one cabinet minister said.
Earlier this month, nearly 60 Labour MPs demanded the UK immediately recognises Palestine as a state, after Israel's defence minister announced plans to force all residents of Gaza into a camp on the ruins of Rafah.
Israel is facing intensifying international condemnation for its actions in Gaza, with the UN secretary general, António Guterres, warning that the 'last lifelines keeping people alive [in the strip] are collapsing'.
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, told British parliamentarians in a visit this month that a two-state solution was 'the only way' to build peace and stability in the region. However, diplomats say he has faced resistance from allies such as Britain and Canada over his push.
France and Saudi Arabia are co-chairing a rescheduled international conference at the UN in New York later this month to discuss postwar plans for Gaza and preparations for formally acknowledging Palestine.
The UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, who said he felt 'appalled, sickened' by the scenes of starving Palestinians being shot as they sought food, said the UK would 'play its part' in reaching a two-state solution for the Middle East, including working with the French.
'We said we wanted that to be part of a process. But we have had no process. What we have had is mayhem and conflict. There has been no process to attach that recognition to,' he told the BBC on Tuesday.
'Why do we say that? It's because we don't just want to recognise symbolically, we want to recognise as a way of getting to the two states that sadly many are trying to thwart at this point in time.
'But there is a live debate and discussion and let me restate again my belief in two states, and two states in which Palestinians have their dignity and freedom and Israel has its security for its people. We will do all we can to achieve that in time.'
In an unusual Commons intervention on Gaza, the health secretary, Wes Streeting, on Tuesday called for recognition of the state of Palestine 'while there's still a state of Palestine left to recognise'.
He criticised the 'intolerable' attack by Israel on the World Health Organization's staff residence and main warehouse in Deir al-Balah on Monday, which had compromised its operations in Gaza.
'I deplore Israel's attacks on healthcare workers as well as other innocent civilians trying to access healthcare or vital aid. These actions go well beyond legitimate self-defence and undermine the prospects for peace,' he told MPs.
'I sincerely hope that the international community can come together, as the foreign secretary has been driving towards, to make sure that we see an end of this war but also that we recognise the state of Palestine while there is a state of Palestine left to recognise.'
Streeting is understood to be among the cabinet ministers who have pushed for recognition of Palestine in recent cabinet meetings. The justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, and the Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn, are also understood to have brought up the issue.
At the Commons liaison committee on Monday, the prime minister said the situation in Gaza was 'intolerable' as he repeated the UK's commitment to recognising a Palestinian state 'at a time most conducive to the prospects of peace' in the region.
Israel has been fighting Hamas in the Gaza Strip since the Palestinian militant group's deadly attack on Israel in October 2023. A US-backed proposal for a 60-day ceasefire is being discussed at talks in Doha.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
Witkoff plans to visit the Mideast in push for Gaza ceasefire, State Department spokesperson says
President Donald Trump 's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, planned to head to the Middle East as the U.S. tries once again to reach a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, the State Department 's spokesperson said Tuesday. Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters that Witkoff was going to the region with a 'strong hope' that the U.S. can deliver a ceasefire deal as well as a new humanitarian corridor for aid distribution. 'I would suggest that we might have some good news, but, again, as we know, this could be a constantly changing dynamic,' said Bruce, who didn't have other details about where Witkoff would be going or what he had planned. Three U.S. officials said Witkoff is traveling to Europe this week to discuss a range of issues, including Gaza and the push for a ceasefire, but they had no details about Middle East stops and did not share where specifically Witkoff would travel to and when. The officials were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The State Department press office didn't respond to messages seeking more details on Witkoff's travel, and it wasn't immediately clear what his schedule would be this week. A breakthrough in talks on a ceasefire deal has eluded the Trump administration for months as conditions worsen in Gaza. The territory had its deadliest day yet for aid-seekers in over 21 months of war, with at least 85 Palestinians killed while trying to reach food Sunday. The Israeli army has said it fired warning shots, but says the reported death toll was greatly inflated. The United Nations' food agency accused Israeli forces of firing on the crowd of Palestinians seeking humanitarian aid. Bruce said the incident that took place while civilians were trying to reach aid entering through the Zikim crossing with Israel is 'absolutely horrible" and reinforced why the U.S. is pushing for a new humanitarian corridor to be created as part of any truce. The sides have held weeks of talks in Qatar, reporting small signs of progress but no major breakthroughs. Officials have said a main sticking point is the redeployment of Israeli troops after any ceasefire takes place. The U.S. plan calls for a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release some hostages while Israel would free Palestinian prisoners and allow a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza. During the 60 days, the sides are also to begin negotiations on a permanent end to the war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until Hamas yields power and is disarmed, while Hamas says it will not release all of the hostages until the war is over. It is seeking assurances that Netanyahu will not resume the war after the 60 days, as he did in March after an early ceasefire expired. Hamas is holding 50 hostages — 20 of whom are believed to still be alive. ___
Reuters
22 minutes ago
- Reuters
More than 100 aid, rights groups call for action as hunger spreads in Gaza
July 23 (Reuters) - More than 100 largely aid and rights groups on Wednesday called for governments to take action as hunger spreads in Gaza, including by demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the lifting of all restrictions on the flow of humanitarian aid. In a statement signed by 111 organizations, including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Refugees International, the groups warned that mass starvation was spreading across the enclave even as tons of food, clean water, medical supplies and other items sit untouched just outside Gaza as humanitarian organizations are blocked from accessing or delivering them. "As the Israeli government's siege starves the people of Gaza, aid workers are now joining the same food lines, risking being shot just to feed their families. With supplies now totally depleted, humanitarian organisations are witnessing their own colleagues and partners waste away before their eyes," the organizations said. "The Government of Israel's restrictions, delays, and fragmentation under its total siege have created chaos, starvation, and death." The organizations called for governments to demand that all bureaucratic and administrative restrictions be lifted, all land crossings be opened, access to everyone across Gaza to be ensured and for the rejection of military-controlled distribution and a restoration of a "principled, UN-led humanitarian response." "States must pursue concrete measures to end the siege, such as halting the transfer of weapons and ammunition." Israel, which controls all supplies entering Gaza, denies it is responsible for shortages of food. More than 800 people have been killed in recent weeks trying to reach food, mostly in mass shootings by Israeli soldiers posted near Gaza Humanitarian Foundation distribution centers. The foundation, backed by the United States, has been fiercely criticized by humanitarian organizations, including the United Nations, for an alleged lack of neutrality. Israeli forces have killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in airstrikes, shelling and shooting since launching their assault on Gaza in response to attacks on Israel by the Hamas group that killed 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages in October 2023. For the first time since the war began, Palestinian officials say dozens are now also dying of hunger. Gaza has seen its food stocks run out since Israel cut off all supplies to the territory in March and then lifted that blockade in May with new measures it says are needed to prevent aid from being diverted to militant groups. The Norwegian Refugee Council told Reuters on Tuesday its aid stocks were completely depleted in Gaza, with some of its staff now starving, and the organization accused Israel of paralysing its work.
Times
36 minutes ago
- Times
Independence or more immigration? Why Scotland can't have both
T here was a fascinating piece in The Sunday Times by my colleague David Leask about English folk becoming SNP candidates for the Holyrood election. One was Math Campbell-Sturgess, a 42-year-old former army reservist from Cambridgeshire. 'Independence isn't about where you come from,' he said. 'It's about who makes the decisions that matter in your life.' Campbell-Sturgess is not typical of English folk living in Scotland. Leask unearthed hitherto-unseen polling data that breaks down people's views on independence according to their country of birth. Only 35 per cent of English-born voters in Scotland support independence, and 65 per cent prefer a UK that sticks together. Immigrants to Scotland from further afield have similar views: only 40 per cent are in favour of breaking up Britain while 60 per cent are opposed.
