PRO-PALESTINE campaigners celebrated a major victory after Labour conference agreed to back a motion explicitly condemning Israel’s Gaza genocide.

The motion, approved over the opposition of the party leadership and in the face of a ludicrously lopsided debate on Monday, also demands a ban on arms sales and comprehensive sanctions on Israel.

Palestine Solidarity Campaign Director Ben Jamal said: “This is a huge defeat for the government, with the Labour Party finally accepting that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

“This historic vote must now become government policy: imposing comprehensive sanctions on Israel and a full arms embargo.

“After almost two years of complicity in Israel’s genocide, the movement in solidarity with Palestine is turning the tide. People across this country are standing side-by-side with the Palestinian people demanding their liberation.

“If the government tries to ignore this momentous vote, it would not only be in denial of the facts, against public opinion, increasingly globally isolated, but also at war with its own party.”

Conference also voted down a motion supporting the government’s approach — in both cases the near-unanimous support of affiliated unions was critical to the outcome.