CAMPAIGNERS welcomed Britain’s restoration of funding to the the UN’s Palestinian relief agency UNRWA today, but urged the government to go a step further and halt arms sales today.
In January, the Foreign Office paused funding to the main source of aid to Gaza, over unproven claims that its staff had links to Hamas.
Former French foreign minister Catherine Colonna led an independent review which concluded the agency had in place “a significant number of mechanisms and procedures to ensure compliance with the humanitarian principle of neutrality.”
Today, Foreign Secretary David Lammy told MPs that he was “reassured” by the review, and announced that the government would recommit funding and deliver £21 million.
Following the tabling of an amendment calling for an arms embargo, Mr Lammy said it “would not be right” to have a blanket ban on arms to Israel, because it is “surrounded by people who would see its annihilation.”
Labour backbencher Andrew Slaughter asked Mr Lammy to explain when the government will publish its assessment on international humanitarian law breaches and what the consequences are.
Despite calling for its publication while in opposition, Mr Lammy cryptically replied that it was a “quasi-legal process and it’s important that I follow the actions in the appropriate way, with all probity and all integrity, so I would consider those assessments when they’re made available to me.”
Amnesty UK chief executive Sacha Deshmukh welcomed Mr Lammy’s commitment to reviewing Israel’s compliance with international humanitarian law, but warned that Palestinians in Gaza “can’t wait for action from the UK.”
“Given the overwhelming evidence of Israel’s war crimes in Gaza and the risk of further atrocities, the UK should suspend arms transfers to Israel immediately,” he said.
Alison Griffin from Save the Children said the restoration of funding was welcome, but urged Labour to “go further and use all of its diplomatic power to press for an immediate and definitive ceasefire, allow full humanitarian access, release the remaining hostages, and suspend arms to the government of Israel.”
Palestine Solidarity Campaign said Israel’s allegations “should not have been treated as credible in the first place given Israel’s track record of confecting falsehoods to undermine respect for Palestinian rights.”
The group called on the government to condemn the behaviour, make clear that it will end arms sales, and support all actions at the international courts to hold Israel to account.
