As Gaza starves, Israel fights on
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Spectator
26 minutes ago
- Spectator
Starmer's Palestine policy is perverse
Keir Starmer's declaration that Britain will recognise a Palestinian state unless Israel takes 'substantive steps' to end the war in Gaza is, on its face, a symbolic diplomatic gesture. Yet symbols, particularly in international affairs, carry weight. And this one is a blow to Israel, both politically and strategically. The question is not whether this decision is consequential, but how and for whom. Framed as a humanitarian imperative, the British ultimatum appears, on closer inspection, to rest on an unsettling inversion of logic. The precondition for recognition of a Palestinian state is not reform or renunciation of violence by the Palestinian leadership, nor a credible commitment to peaceful coexistence, good governance, or democratic legitimacy. Rather, it is Israel's conduct alone, its willingness to agree to a ceasefire, to deliver aid, and to move toward a long-term peace process, that is made the determining factor. Starmer's conditions should of course mention Hamas's responsibility, and that of the Palestinian Authority with its decades-long record of corruption, incitement, and rejectionism, for the horrific war. This is the peculiarity at the heart of Starmer's announcement. Recognition of statehood is offered as a punitive measure. It is effectively, a sanction imposed on Israel for continuing a war it did not start, and whose most basic defensive aims are not yet fulfilled. The attack of 7 October, in which Hamas-led forces massacred, raped, and abducted Israeli civilians in the deadliest day of anti-Jewish violence since the Holocaust, appears in this logic not as a disqualifying atrocity but as the trigger for Western diplomatic reward and a capitulation to the demands of the worst parts of Starmer's domestic pressures. That reward, moreover, creates perverse incentives. If recognition is contingent on Israel achieving a ceasefire, then Hamas has every reason to prolong the conflict rather than agree to the proposals already agreed on by Israel. In fact, in recent rounds of negotiations, it has been Hamas, not Israel, that has rejected US- and Egypt-brokered proposals for truce. Britain's move risks reinforcing the calculus that terrorism and intransigence are politically productive strategies. Why compromise when war advances your diplomatic standing? If Hamas holds out until September Britain will reward them recognition. If they agree to a ceasefire, then that recognition will most likely fall away. The broader implication is chilling: terrorism works. What the Palestinians could not gain from Oslo, Camp David, or the Annapolis process, they now edge closer to achieving by Hamas-led butchery. And the lesson will not be lost on other Islamic terrorist groups. If the United Kingdom, long a proponent of negotiated two-state coexistence, can shift towards unilateral recognition without requiring any substantive improvement in Palestinian behaviour, then the deterrent against future atrocities weakens. The incentive structure is reversed. Violence is vindicated, and increased violence can tip the balance in their favour. Indeed, Starmer's conditions underscore a deeper asymmetry. While Israel is asked to prove its readiness for peace by making strategic concessions, the Palestinians are exempt from analogous expectations. There is no requirement to fully dismantle all terrorist infrastructure, to end incitement, to hold elections, or to stop paying stipends to the families of terrorist killers as a reward and incentive. The Palestinian Authority, far from being a credible alternative to Hamas, continues to glorify violence and undermine coexistence. Just who does Starmer think will run this state and what policies will they take towards Israel, Jews, deradicalisation, and peace? What sort of state would such leadership produce? The most likely answer is a new Islamic terror state, making Britain's decision not a gesture of peace but a leap into further delusion. It bypasses the very preconditions that any serious two-state solution must entail: mutual recognition, renunciation of violence, and the emergence of stable, responsible governance. Recognition without those anchors risks institutionalising the very dynamics that have kept the conflict alive. None of this is to deny the suffering in Gaza. Civilian suffering is immense, and better aid solutions are important. But conflating humanitarian concern with state recognition is both analytically unsound and strategically counterproductive. In truth, Britain's posture is less an act of moral courage than a transparent diplomatic sleight of hand. It pretends to reward Palestinian aspirations, but in fact punishes Israeli resilience. It offers a vision of peace, while reinforcing the machinery of perpetual war. On 7 October, Israel learned that its enemies are prepared to cross every moral line. Starmer's proposal risks confirming that lesson with a dangerous corollary: such depravity not only pays, it persuades. Hamas, in other words, sought to invert the moral foundations of Israel's legitimacy by orchestrating an atrocity so extreme that it would provoke a devastating retaliation — one whose humanitarian toll, cynically manufactured and then weaponised through propaganda, could be falsely presented to the world as a mirror image of the Holocaust, thereby compelling the very same nations that once affirmed Israel's right to exist to now affirm the Palestinian claim to statehood. It seems to have worked on many History will judge whether this gesture was, in the end, merely symbolic. But it already sends a signal that cannot be unheard. And that signal, to Israel and the world, is not one of peace, but of peril.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
UN investigator says US sanctions over her criticism of Israel will seriously impact her life
An independent U.N. investigator and outspoken critic of Israel's policies in Gaza says that the sanctions recently imposed on her by the Trump administration will have serious impacts on her life and work. Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, is a member of a group of experts chosen by the 47-member U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. She is tasked with probing human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories and has been vocal about what she has described as the 'genocide' by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza. Both Israel and the United States, which provides military support to its close ally, have strongly denied that accusation. Washington has decried what it called a 'campaign of political and economic warfare' against the U.S. and Israel, and earlier this month imposed sanctions on Albanese, following an unsuccessful U.S. pressure campaign to force the international body to remove her from her post. 'It's very serious to be on the list of the people sanctioned by the U.S.,' Albanese told The Associated Press in Rome on Tuesday, adding that individuals sanctioned by the U.S. cannot have financial interactions or credit cards with any American bank. When used in 'a political way," she said the sanctions 'are harmful, dangerous.' 'My daughter is American. I've been living in the U.S. and I have some assets there. So of course, it's going to harm me,' Albanese said. 'What can I do? I did everything I did in good faith, and knowing that, my commitment to justice is more important than personal interests.' The sanctions have not dissuaded Albanese from her work — or her viewpoints — and in July, she published a new report, focused on what she defines as 'Israel's genocidal economy' in Palestinian territories. 'There's an entire ecosystem that has allowed Israel's occupation to thrive. And then it has also morphed into an economy of genocide,' she said. In the conclusion of the report, Albanese calls for sanctions against Israel and prosecution of 'architects, executors and profiteers of this genocide.' Albanese noted a recent shift in perceptions in Europe and around the world following an outcry over images of emaciated children in Gaza and reports of dozens of hunger-related deaths after nearly 22 months of war. 'It's shocking," she said. "I don't think that there are words left to describe what's happening to the Palestinian people.' The war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel and killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 people captive. Israel's retaliatory campaign has killed over 60,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between combatants and civilians but says more than half the dead are women and children. Nearly 21 months into the conflict that displaced the vast majority of Gaza's 2.3 million people, the United Nations says hunger is rampant after a lengthy Israeli blockade on food entering the territory and medical care is extremely limited.
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Israel condemns Keir Starmer over plan to recognise Palestine
Sir Keir Starmer has announced that Britain will join France in formally recognising a Palestinian state in September, unless Israel takes action to end the 'appalling' situation in Gaza. The announcement was met with criticism by Israel. Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said that the decision 'rewards Hamas's monstrous terrorism and punishes its victims'. Starmer gave Israel an ultimatum on Tuesday afternoon as he said that the catastrophic failure to supply aid to Gaza meant that 'we see starving babies, children too weak to stand — images that will stay with us for a lifetime'. He said the UK would recognise Palestine unless Israel reached a ceasefire, committed itself to a two-state solution and made clear that it would not annex the occupied West Bank. Given Israel's opposition to these terms, this means that recognition of a Palestinian state is almost inevitable. The United States has also criticised the announcement. President Trump, who was flying back from Scotland, said it was 'rewarding Hamas'. Netanyahu said on X: 'A jihadist state on Israel's border TODAY will threaten Britain TOMORROW. Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you too. It will not happen.' Israel said the decision 'harms efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza'. Starmer now hopes to galvanise other world leaders into recognising a Palestinian state at the UN general assembly in September. He is now expected to embark on a diplomatic blitz to 'maximise' pressure on Israel. The prime minister made the announcement under mounting pressure from his own party. A third of his cabinet had been pressing for recognition, and more than 130 Labour MPs signed a letter pressing him to act. Starmer said 'this is the moment to act' and that the situation in Gaza meant the imperative to recognise a Palestinian state was 'under pressure like never before'. He said: 'I've always said we will recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to a proper peace process, at the moment of maximum impact for the two-state solution. 'With that solution now under threat, this is the moment to act. So today — as part of this process towards peace — I can confirm the UK will recognise the state of Palestine by the United Nations general assembly in September unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the appalling situation in Gaza, agree to a ceasefire and commit to a long-term, sustainable peace, reviving the prospect of a two-state solution. 'This includes allowing the UN to restart the supply of aid, and making clear there will be no annexations in the West Bank. Meanwhile, our message to the terrorists of Hamas is unchanged and unequivocal.' Melanie Ward, a Labour MP and former chief executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians which has been pushing for action, said Starmer's move was a 'huge shift in the UK's position'. She said the government was using it 'to put conditions on Israel that would drive desperately-needed, real change in the lives of Palestinians at this most horrific of times. It is the right thing to do.' Speaking from Downing Street, the prime minister said that aid must be allowed in to Gaza. 'The Palestinian people have endured terrible suffering. Now, in Gaza because of a catastrophic failure of aid, we see starving babies, children too weak to stand: Images that will stay with us for a lifetime. 'The suffering must end. Yesterday I discussed this with President Trump and we are mounting a major effort to get humanitarian supplies back in. 'By air — and UK aid has been air dropped into Gaza today — and, crucially, by land we need to see at least 500 trucks entering Gaza every day. But ultimately the only way to bring this humanitarian crisis to an end is through a long-term settlement.' Trump said that he and Starmer had not discussed formally recognising Palestine during their meeting on Monday. He initially said 'we have no view on that' then added: 'You could make the case that you're rewarding Hamas if you do that. I don't think they should be rewarded. So I'm not in that camp, to be honest.' Trump was asked whether his reaction to Starmer's announcement differed from his dismissive view of President Macron when Macron said that France would recognise the Palestinian state. 'I guess Starmer is doing the same as Macron, right?' Trump said. 'He's basically, is he saying the same thing? I think so. Essentially, they're saying the same thing, and that's OK. You know, it doesn't mean I have to agree.' The Israeli foreign ministry said: 'The shift in the British government's position at this time, following the French move and internal political pressures, constitutes a reward for Hamas and harms efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of hostages.' David Lammy, the foreign secretary, said that Israel's actions in Gaza had 'horrified the world'. In an impassioned speech to a conference in New York, Lammy said 'the two-state solution is in peril' and that recognising a Palestinian state was the best way to save it. Britain 'bears a special burden of responsibility' for ensuring a two-state solution as a result of the 1917 Balfour declaration that laid the foundations for a Jewish state in the Middle East, Lammy said. Palestinians had suffered a 'historical injustice' in having their rights ignored after Britain promised to protect them, he added. 'The devastation in Gaza is heartbreaking. Children are starving and Israel's drip feeding of aid has horrified the world,' Lammy said. 'The Netanyahu government's rejection of a two-state solution is wrong — it's wrong morally and it's wrong strategically. It harms the interests of the Israeli people, closing off the only path to a just and lasting peace. And that is why we are determined to protect the viability of a two-state solution.'
