Keir Starmer has urged Israel to obey international law but refused to back calls for a ceasefire, as he seeks to heal increasingly bitter divisions within his own party over the conflict in Gaza. The Labour leader spelled out his position on the crisis in detail after days of criticism from many of his own members and MPs that he appeared oblivious to the suffering of Palestinians.
In an attempt to reassure MPs and councillors who have threatened to quit the party over the issue, Starmer gave his most direct criticism yet of the Israeli bombardment, expressing “concern” over some of its actions and urging the Israeli government to allow fuel to cross into Gaza. But he rejected calls made by some of his most high-profile colleagues for an immediate ceasefire in the region, saying such a move would make it harder to rescue Israeli hostages still being held by Hamas.
“While I understand calls for a ceasefire at this stage, I do not believe that it is the correct position now,” he told an audience at the Chatham House foreign affairs thinktank in London. He said a ceasefire would “freeze the conflict”, allowing Hamas to launch attacks against Israel again in the future. “Hamas would be emboldened and start preparing for future violence immediately,” he said, adding that he wanted instead to see a temporary “humanitarian pause” in fighting.
The comments were a direct rejection of calls for a ceasefire made by, among others, the Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, the Labour mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and the Labour mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham. At least 13 shadow ministers have also joined calls for an end to the fighting.
Starmer also refused to support the judgment of the UN among others that war crimes may have been committed during the bombardment of Gaza. “Israel has to act in accordance with the law,” he said. But he added: “I think it’s unwise for politicians to stand on stages like this or to sit in television studios and pronounce day by day which acts may or may not be lawful under international law.” His comments were criticised by Sacha Deshmukh, the chief executive of Amnesty International UK, who said: “In failing to call for an immediate ceasefire, Keir Starmer is not showing the clear and principled leadership that this decades-old crisis needs.”
