UK MP accuses Israel of 'censorship' over denied entry
Children stand inside a heavily damaged building in a residential area in Deir Al Balah in the central Gaza Strip on April 7, 2025, following overnight Israeli airstrikes targeting the area (AFP photo)
LONDON — One of two British lawmakers who were denied entry into Israel at the weekend accused the Israeli government on Monday of being motivated by "control and censorship".
Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang, from the governing Labour Party, flew from London to Israel on Saturday but were blocked from entering the country and deported.
The pair had been due to visit the occupied Palestinian territory of the West Bank.
"This act was not just a diplomatic affront. This wasn't about security. It was about control and censorship," Mohamed told the UK parliament.
She added that it had been "a challenging few days".
Yang said she had not anticipated "the risks of detention and deportation from a British ally".
"People around the world are listening to us, our voice is powerful, and we must continue to use it without fear or favour," she told MPs.
Delivering a statement on the incident to lawmakers, UK Middle East minister Hamish Falconer said it was likely the fist time that British MPs had been "barred" from entering Israel.
"It is no way to treat democratically elected representatives of a close partner nation. We have made this clear at the highest levels in Israel," he said.
Falconer said the Israel government's decision had apparently been taken based on comments the two MPs had made in the House of Commons.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Saturday called the move "unacceptable, counterproductive, and deeply concerning".
But Israel said the lawmakers' claim to be part of an official parliamentary delegation was "found to be false, as no official body in Israel was aware of such a delegation's visit".
"Further questioning revealed that the purpose of their visit was to document the actions of Israeli security forces and spread hate speech against Israel," the interior ministry statement said in a statement.
Israel resumed intense strikes on Gaza on March 18, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas. Efforts to restore the truce have so far failed.
According to the health ministry in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, at least 1,391 Palestinians have been killed in the renewed Israeli operations, taking the overall death toll since the start of the war to 50,752.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Roya News
an hour ago
- Roya News
Far-right 'Israeli' minister Ben-Gvir storms Aqsa Mosque amid police protection
'Israeli' National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir stormed the Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem early Wednesday, accompanied by dozens of settlers and protected by heavily armed 'Israeli' police. According to the Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs in Jerusalem, Ben-Gvir entered the courtyards of the mosque under tight security measures enforced by 'Israeli' forces, including special units. It marks his eighth intrusion into the site since joining Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right government in 2022. Eyewitnesses and local sources reported that groups of settlers entered the compound from the Moroccan Gate (Bab al-Maghariba), performed provocative tours, and received briefings about the so-called 'Temple Mount.' Some were seen performing open Talmudic rituals near the eastern section of the mosque before exiting through the Chain Gate (Bab al-Silsila). The incursion was led by Ben-Gvir alongside senior Israeli police officers, drawing widespread condemnation from Palestinians in Jerusalem. The Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs described the move as a serious provocation and a deliberate escalation. In parallel, 'Israeli' police intensified their restrictions at the mosque's entrances, preventing many Palestinians from entering or praying. Several worshippers had their ID cards confiscated, while others were delayed or turned away entirely—a continuation of long-standing measures aimed at tightening 'Israeli' control over the holy site.
Roya News
an hour ago
- Roya News
Israeli Occupation fire kills 31, wounds 200 near Gaza aid center
At least 31 people were killed and around 200 others injured in Gaza on Wednesday after the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) opened fire near a food distribution site, according to the territory's civil defense agency. Mahmud Bassal, a spokesperson for Gaza's civil defense, said the incident took place as thousands of people gathered to receive humanitarian assistance. "We transported at least 31 martyrs and about 200 wounded as a result of Israeli tank and drone fire on thousands of citizens... on their way to receive food from the American aid centre," Bassal told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Roya News
16 hours ago
- Roya News
Three Palestinian paramedics killed by 'Israeli' tank shell while on duty
Three Palestinian paramedics were killed by an 'Israeli' tank shell as they attempted to evacuate wounded individuals from a home in Gaza City, the Gaza Interior Ministry's Medical Services Directorate announced Tuesday. In a statement, the directorate mourned the three members of its Ambulance and Emergency department, saying they "were killed by Israeli occupation fire while performing their humanitarian duty." The attack occurred Monday night in the Tuffah neighborhood, northeast of Gaza City. The paramedics were attempting to reach several injured people inside a house that had been targeted by 'Israeli' forces when they were struck. The statement added that the three were killed instantly by a "direct hit from an Israeli tank shell." According to the directorate, another ambulance crew that attempted to reach the scene to retrieve the bodies came under fire from 'Israeli' military vehicles and drones, preventing their access. "After strenuous efforts, our crews were able to retrieve the martyrs from the targeted location this morning, several hours after the incident occurred," the statement continued. The Medical Services Directorate has called on the international community and all relevant institutions to open an "urgent international investigation into this Israeli crime." It also pleaded for "the provision of protection for medical teams and to work to prevent the occupation's repeated targeting of them during the course of their duties." The directorate affirmed it would continue its humanitarian mission despite the significant risks. In a separate statement on Tuesday, Hamas condemned the attack, calling the targeting of the ambulance crew "a compound war crime, added to the black record of the Zionist occupation." "Targeting those who rescue the victims represents an unprecedented level of brutality and criminality, and reveals the occupation's endeavor to choke all tools of survival and rescue in Gaza," the Hamas statement read.
