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Act over Gaza ‘doom loop of hell’, ministers told
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, January 7, 2025

MINISTERS must act over the crisis in Gaza, where Palestinians are trapped in a “doom loop of hell,” MPs from all parties said today.

The government came under unprecedented pressure over its pro-Israel policy as the Commons looks increasingly united on the issue.

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran, herself of Palestinian descent, led the charge, but MPs of all major parties united in expressing anger at British complicity in the catastrophe.

Ms Moran told Foreign Office Minister Hamish Falconer: “People in Gaza are trapped in a doom loop of hell. Hospitals decimated, ceasefires promised and never delivered. Is this really everything the UK has got?

“Have we deployed everything to make this stop? When will we recognise Palestine? Why haven’t we stopped arms trade to Israel? And when will the government ban trading with illegal settlements?

“Our grief is fathomless. People across the UK are looking on in horror, and the horror in Gaza must stop now.”

She was backed by suspended Labour MP John McDonnell, who demanded the expulsion of Israel’s ambassador to London, the far-right Tzipi Hotovely.

He said: “We have an Israeli ambassador who’s an advocate of ‘Greater Israel,’ refuses to recognise the Palestinian state, defies all the UN resolutions that have been passed about how we can secure that peace, and she still remains in this country.

“Why aren’t we expelling the Israeli ambassador?”

Leading Tory backbencher Kit Malthouse attacked Mr Falconer for claiming to be “frustrated,” saying:

“Given the government’s unwillingness to take any significant steps to either compel the imposition of the ceasefire, or compliance with international law, rather than frustrated, isn’t he ashamed?

“Millions of people in this country and around the world believe there is an inherent racism at the heart of British foreign policy. That says that Palestinian lives matter much less than any other lives, or indeed than Israeli lives.”

The SNP’s Brendan O’Hara said that “the UK is complicit in the mass killing of Palestinians” while independent MP Jeremy Corbyn demanded an end to British arms sales which were “destroying life in Gaza.”

In something of a change of tone as a result of the pressure, Mr Falconer said the government “condemns Israel’s restriction on aid in the strongest terms. The scale of human suffering is unimaginable. We have been clear this is a man-made crisis, and Israel must act immediately to address it.

“Air strikes within the designated humanitarian zone show there are no safe spaces left for civilians. Reports of up to eight children having died from cold weather conditions are unconscionable.”

 

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