Britain must put further pressure on Israel by introducing more sanctions and a full ban on arms exports to stop the “oppression” of Palestinians, Labour MPs and activists have told the party's annual conference.
Speaking at a fringe event on Tuesday, MP Rosena Allin-Khan called for the government to do more after its recent decision to sanction illegal settlers that had opened up a severe rift with the Israeli government.
“We need to keep going, don’t stop,” she said, calling for a complete halt to the UK arms trade with Israel and for the closure of loopholes that allowed military equipment into Israel, in particular the F-35 fighter programme.
Ms Allin-Khan, a doctor who has worked in the occupied Palestinian territories, also called for the rapid implementation of the trade ban with illegal West Bank settlements and greater accountability for Israel’s actions towards Palestinians.
There has been a clear shift in the Labour government under new Prime Minister Andy Burnham towards a more strident stance with Israel. Sources have said the move has left diplomatic relations at a nadir.
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband earlier told the conference that the government had “called out ethnic cleansing” in the occupied West Bank. He also claimed there was “the evidence of war crimes” in Gaza and decried Israel’s “illegal occupation of Palestine”.
“We hear you. You were right”, Mr Miliband said, addressing those in the party who had demanded a tougher stance.
Ms Allin-Khan told the fringe event that the acknowledgement by the UK government that it “had got it wrong was incredibly powerful”. But now was the moment to halt the arms trade with Israel “since it's recognised as an unlawful occupation”.
She said Britain must also create a coalition of like-minded governments. “I do have faith that Ed [Miliband] and Andy [Burnham] will be able to forge partnerships with other allies … but we need tangible action.”
That influence should be used to get vitally needed medical equipment into the Palestinian territories, particularly Gaza where 174,000 people have been wounded in the war with 50,000 suffering “life-changing injuries”, a third of them children.
Aseel Baidoun, deputy director of advocacy at Medical Aid for Palestinians, said the new stance was welcome.
“Finally we feel listened to,” she said, although “nothing has changed on ground”. Activism by pro-Palestine supporters “has finally paid off but this is only the first step”, Ms Baidoun added.
She called for Britain to go further by imposing additional sanctions and a suspension of Britain’s free trade agreement with Israel. “We want the British government to recognise the realities of apartheid,” she said.
