27 May: Labour condemns Israeli strikes on Rafah
My colleague the Shadow Foreign Secretary said ” We condemn the appalling strikes on a supposed ‘safe zone’ in Rafah. We have opposed an Israeli offensive in Rafah for months. Israel must now comply with the ICJ’s orders. We need an immediate ceasefire to end this war, get all the hostages out and get aid into Gaza.
20 May: Labour supports the independence of international courts
My colleague, Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy said in Parliament today:
“Labour has been clear throughout this conflict that international law must be upheld, the independence of international courts must be respected, and all sides must be accountable for their actions.
Arrest warrants are not a conviction or a determination of guilt, but they do reflect the evidence, and the judgment of the prosecutor about the grounds for individual criminal responsibility.
Labour’s position is that the ICC chief prosecutor’s decision to apply for arrest warrants is an independent matter for the Court and the prosecutor”
10 May: Labour opposes Rafah offensive
As I write, there are reports of constant shelling of Rafah in Gaza, with thousands of people fleeing the area. These attacks, by the Israeli army, started this week.
My Labour colleague and Shadow Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, raised an urgent question to the government in Parliament this week about the attacks. The government did not have an answer. This is a dereliction of duty towards the 1.4 million people sheltering there.
David Lammy said:
“Labour opposes an offensive in Rafah, which risks catastrophic consequences”.
“Some 1.4 million people, who are trapped in Rafah, many of them ordered to go there by the IDF in the first place. Half the children in Gaza are in Rafah. I am concerned about where is now safe for them to go”.
“I want the Government to outline why it thinks an attack on Rafah does not present a clear risk of a serious breach of international humanitarian law”.
As your MP of course I strongly support Labour’s opposition to the Rafah offensive. I urge the government to speak out on behalf of the people of the UK who are so horrified by what is taking place.
Please see more here
3 Apr: Labour says the government must suspend arms sales to Israel if lawyers have found clear risk of serious breaches of international law
Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy, has called on the government to publish its advice regarding UK arms exports to Israel. David Lammy accused the Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron of ‘going silent’ after failing to get a response to his request to publish the legal advice surrounding UK arms sales to Israel on 22 March.
On 8 March, David Cameron said he would get new advice on Israel’s compliance with international law “in the coming days,” but nothing has materialised.
David Lammy said:
“Our deepest sympathies go out to the families of the three heroic Brits who put their lives on the line to get Palestinian civilians the aid they desperately need. But Israel must face serious consequences, not just tough rhetoric, for their appalling deaths.
“Labour’s message to the government is equally clear. Publish the legal advice now. If it says there is a clear risk that UK arms might be used in a serious breach of international humanitarian law, it’s time to suspend the sale of those arms.”
26 Mar: Labour says UNSC call for ceasefire is vital
My colleague, Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary has said “The UN Security Council’s call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza is vital and must be a turning point. The British government must urgently apply diplomatic pressure for it to be implemented in full.”
10 Mar: Labour calls for resuming funding to the UNRWA
In a letter to the Foreign Secretary, my colleague the Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy urged the UK government to:
- Call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire
- Pursue all available means to deliver aid to Gaza, including resuming funding to UNRWA
- Insist that Israel preserve the status quo at the Holy Sites in Jerusalem
21 Feb: I voted for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza
This week I tabled a motion in Parliament with my Labour colleagues calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, one that lasts and is observed by all sides. It was unanimously agreed and passed.
In Bristol we always stand up for the most vulnerable whether at home or overseas. That’s what I did on the night of 21st Feb and what I will always do as your Member of Parliament.
The fighting and unimaginable suffering of the Palestinian people must stop. I’m particularly concerned about an Israeli ground offensive in Rafah. Around 1.4 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering there with nowhere safe to go, having previously been told to flee there by the Israeli military. Rafah is also the gateway for aid to Gaza, at a time when the humanitarian situation is already dire, and the UN says hundreds of thousands of people face starvation. Any intensive military offensive in Rafah risks catastrophic consequences for the civilian population and fatal disruption to the humanitarian operation. That’s why the motion I tabled made it clear that it must not take place.
I also called for rapid and unimpeded humanitarian relief, an end to settlement expansion and settler violence and a political process towards a two-state solution. A safe and secure Israel alongside a sovereign and viable Palestinian state is the only path to a just and lasting peace. A ceasefire with no political horizon will not be sustainable.
Labour’s motion also called on Hamas to release and return all hostages. The families of the remaining hostages are frozen in uncertainty, anguish and pain and their continued detention is prolonging this war. They should be released and returned immediately. Also, for a ceasefire to hold, all parties must comply with its terms. One sided demands that do not recognise the need to ensure that an attack like October 7th cannot happen again or do not condemn Hamas terrorism will not succeed. A lasting ceasefire is what’s needed and in the best interests of all people.
I will continue to call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and urge the Government to do the same. I would like to see them convene an urgent session of the UN Security Council to press for this and to call for rapid and unimpeded humanitarian relief to be provided in Gaza.
10 May: Labour opposes Rafah offensive
As I write, there are reports of constant shelling of Rafah in Gaza, with thousands of people fleeing the area. These attacks, by the Israeli army, started this week.
My Labour colleague and Shadow Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, raised an urgent question to the government in Parliament this week about the attacks. The government did not have an answer. This is a dereliction of duty towards the 1.4 million people sheltering there.
David Lammy said:
“Labour opposes an offensive in Rafah, which risks catastrophic consequences”.
“Some 1.4 million people, who are trapped in Rafah, many of them ordered to go there by the IDF in the first place. Half the children in Gaza are in Rafah. I am concerned about where is now safe for them to go”.
“I want the Government to outline why it thinks an attack on Rafah does not present a clear risk of a serious breach of international humanitarian law”.
As your MP of course I strongly support Labour’s opposition to the Rafah offensive. I urge the government to speak out on behalf of the people of the UK who are so horrified by what is taking place.
Please see more here