The situation in Palestine is a moral emergency. What the Israeli government has inflicted on the people of Gaza is a stain on the conscience of the world.
This Labour Government will not stand by, which is why we are going to be stronger in standing up for what is right, and bolder in the action we take.
The two-state solution – freedom, security and self-determination for both Palestinian and Israeli people – is the North Star of this government’s policy, yet it is under great threat.
Not only is there increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed, but we are also witnessing unprecedented violence, including settler terrorism, and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank perpetrated by settler terrorists.
Alongside international partners including France, Labour is taking action to defend this policy:
- Concluding that Israel’s ongoing occupation of Palestinian territory is unlawful, in line with the finding of the International Court of Justice
- Banning trade in goods from illegal Israeli settlements and taking action on services, creating new designation powers to go after individuals and companies that support, facilitate or profit from illegal settlement activity
- Banning advertising or promotion of land and property in illegal settlements
- Strengthening our existing global human rights sanctions regime to go after those who defy international humanitarian law, in Palestine, and around the world too
- Using our existing global human rights regime to sanction several extremist settlers who have supported or incited acts of violence against Palestinian communities
- Reimposing major economic sanctions on Iran and bearing down on its network of proxy groups including Hezbollah
Hamas committed a monstrous attack on 7 October 2023, and this Labour Government condemns that as strongly today as we did in the immediate aftermath. However, the unbearable suffering that we have seen in Gaza in recent years is a scar on our collective conscience, and it is completely unacceptable that innocent Palestinians, including children, continue to be killed, that there’s still a humanitarian crisis with too little aid getting in, and that the Israeli military continues to expand the area it controls in Gaza.
The action we are taking today is against the government of Israel not its people. Israel faces existential threats to its security, most severely from Iran. That is why we are today also announcing the reimposition of major economic sanctions on Iran, as well as bearing down on its network of proxy groups like Hezbollah.
We are acting today in concert with our international partners, with France committing to a ban on imported goods from illegal settlements, joining the Netherlands, Ireland, Spain, Norway, and with many other countries now pledging that they will work towards a ban.
The only route to security for both peoples is a safe and secure Israel and safe and secure Palestine living side by side in peaceful co-existence. That is why we are taking action – standing up for our values and standing up for what is right.
Stephen Morgan MP
